New Delhi: Outgoing Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah Looks like he left a ticking bomb as a farewell gift to his successor DK Shivakumar And Rahul Gandhi Before deciding to step down from his post on Thursday.A day before resigning as chief minister, Siddaramaiah on Wednesday accepted the long-delayed educational survey report of the Karnataka State Backward Classes Commission, known as the caste census.Read this also Siddaramaiah’s resignation, Shivakumar’s top post decided: Will Congress’ ‘drama’ end in Karnataka or will it continue as before?The report on Karnataka’s first caste survey has been prepared since 2017, during Siddaramaiah’s previous tenure as chief minister. After returning to power in 2023, Siddaramaiah ordered a fresh caste survey, the report of which was to be prepared in 2025.Siddaramaiah’s decision to accept the report just before leaving office is being seen as an important political message.Critics had alleged that successive governments refrained from acting on the first report due to fear of reaction from Lingayats and Vokkaligas, politically influential communities in the state.With the revised report now formally submitted, the focus turns to the next chief minister and cabinet, who will have to decide whether to implement its recommendations.why it mattersThe Karnataka government’s 2025 Caste Survey is one of the most comprehensive exercises conducted by the state to find out the socio-economic status of backward classes, other castes, scheduled castes and scheduled tribes.Read this also Siddaramaiah rejects Congress high command’s Rajya Sabha proposal: Pressure strategy or long-term strategy?However, the report is politically sensitive as it has the potential to disrupt Karnataka’s carefully balanced caste equations. Reports suggest that the number of backward communities may exceed that of Lingayats and Vokkaligas – the two dominant communities that have traditionally shaped the state’s politics for decades.Siddaramaiah’s Ahinda politics – an alliance of minorities, backward classes and Dalits – was designed to challenge that dominance by uniting numerically strong but politically fragmented groups. The caste census report is now being seen as an empirical validation of the social strength of the AHINDA block and could restart that political battle on a larger scale.

Due to this DK Shivkumar is in a difficult situation. Shivakumar is not only the most prominent Vokkaliga leader of the Congress in Karnataka, but is also credited with rebuilding the organizational structure of the party in the state.If the government led by him goes ahead with presenting or implementing the report, it risks a backlash from the influential Lingayat and Vokkaliga communities. On the other hand, delaying the report or shelving it could erode AHINDA’s support base that Siddaramaiah has carefully built up over the years to the Congress.In fact, Siddaramaiah has pushed DKS into a difficult position.Rahul Gandhi’s credibility at stake?Karnataka’s caste census also poses a political challenge at the national level for Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha.Rahul Gandhi has made caste census a central pillar of the national politics of the Congress Party. He has argued that accurate caste data is essential to ensure social justice, fair representation and targeted welfare policies for OBCs, Dalits and minorities.It was Rahul Gandhi who strongly pressured Congress-ruled states to conduct caste surveys to show the party was serious about implementing its politically supported social justice agenda.Under Revanth Reddy, Karnataka and Telangana emerged as the biggest testing grounds for that strategy.If the next government led by Shivakumar refrains from implementing or presenting the report, it could undermine Rahul Gandhi’s larger national narrative on social justice. This will give the BJP an opportunity to accuse the Congress of demanding a caste census at the national level, while being hesitant to act on it in states where it faces political resistance.