At a time when the RSS is looking to unite the different castes of the nation under the umbrella of Hindutva, Congressman and Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah has thrown a spanner in their works.

There is a caste survey going on in Karnataka and the Lingayat community to which Siddaramaiah belongs is confused because they don’t know whether they should identify themselves as Hindu or non-Hindu.

Against this backdrop, Siddaramaiah who participated in his community’s event on Saturday, said, “Lingayat is a separate religion founded by Basava in opposition to the caste system.”

He further added, “According to the varna system, I am a shudra. But that does not mean I can be denied opportunity for education and equality. Caste does not make anyone big or famous……knowledge is nobody’s

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