Why Karnataka Congress leader DK Shivakumar is raking up Lingayat issue now

BENGALURU: Congress leader and water resources minister DK Shivakumar's open apology for his party interfering in religious matters has not only surprised the ruling Congress and JD(S) leaders but also leaders from opposition BJP.
Majority are baffled over the timing of his statement, as it came just over a week ahead of the crucial bypolls in the state. Why did Shivakumar raise the Lingayat issue that was long forgotten? TOI spoke to some leaders to understand his motive.
Many leaders in the BJP claimed this statement has been made keeping in mind the 2019 elections, but Shivakumar says: "Let them think anything they want, but they should also know that they were also a party to the representation made by All India Veershaiva-Lingayat Mahasabha seeking separate religion tag."
Some Congress leaders strongly believe Shivakumar just got carried away and made an emotional statement since he was participating in the Dasara celebrations of a prominent Lingayat mutt in Gadag, but some others believe it was a well planned strategy by a man who is credited to be the troubleshooter of Congress and mastermind behind Congress and JD(S)' post-poll alliance.
"It is no secret that Shivakumar is aspiring to be the CM and he wants to prove a point to party high command by winning the Bellary Lok Sabha bypoll and also ensure the victory of maximum Lok Sabha seats from Karnataka in the 2019. The idea was to woo the larger community Lingayats, who the party believes has completely deserted the Congress after previous Siddaramaiah government notified the Lingayats and Veerashaiva Lingayats as religious minority,'' said a senior Congress leader.
Chief minister HD Kumaraswamy, who was in Mysuru to take part in the Mysuru Dasara celebrations, backed Shivakumar saying the Lingayat issue had not been discussed after the new government was formed. "During the previous government's tenure, when both the communities were sparring with each other, I said that the religious leaders from both the communities must sit together and resolve the issue. And I reiterate my stand."
The previous Congress government in Karnataka, headed by Siddaramaiah, had on March 19 accorded minority religion status to the Lingayat community. The BJP had cautioned the Siddaramaiah government was playing with fire. The move, as expected backfired, with the defeat of prominent ministers, Vinay Kulkarni, Sharanprakash Patil and Basavaraj Rayaraddi who had aggressively pushed for the religious minority tag to the Lingayat community with an exception being M B Patil.