Lingayat Community

The ruling BJP will not interfere in the investigation of rape case involving prominent Lingayat seer Dr Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru, State Home Minister Araga Jnanendra said on Saturday

Political sources say it's hard to conclude yet which constituencies Bommai is addressing: The Lingayats, the middle class, industry, or the less well-off

There is a land deal controversy to settle and river water disputes to negotiate but his first challenge will be forming a council of ministers that pleases everyone.

Over 500 Veerashaiva-Lingayat seers from different parts of Karnataka on Sunday demanded that Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, whose exit appears imminent, should be allowed to continue in office.

In Karnataka's multi-layered politics that often subsumes the BJP's Hindutva project in the quest for identities based on region and castes, any challenge becomes onerous for the chief minister.

The Siddaramaiah government on May 23 notified minority religion status to Lingayats amid protests by some sections of the community

The Union Home Ministry will examine in detail the Karnataka government's recommendation to grant religious minority tag to the Lingayat and Veerashaiva Lingayat community as and when it receives the proposal, an official said today. The central government's reaction came a day after the Congress government in poll-bound Karnataka decided to recommend that religious minority tag be granted to the numerically strong and politically-influential Lingayat and Veerashaiva Lingayat community. The issue of granting religious minority tag to the Lingayat and Veerashaiva Lingayat community will be examined as and when the Home Ministry receives the proposal from the Karnataka government, a senior home ministry official said here. The Home Ministry is expected to forward the proposal to the Registrar General & Census Commissioner for a detailed examination and suggestions, another official said. The Karnataka government took the decision following a recommendation of an expert panel set up

Living mostly in North Karnataka, Lingayats constitute 17% of state population. Since their vote is seen as decisive in 110 of the 224 Assembly seats, Lingayats are considered politically powerful

From Monday, 246 Indira canteens will be opened across Karnataka to serve heavily subsidised and cooked food