LINGAYATS AND VOKKALIGAS

• The Lingayats are a dominant community who make up nearly 17% of Karnataka’s six crore population .
• The community can determine the outcome of polls in as many as 90-100 of the state’s 224 Assembly constituencies.
• The Lingayats, classified as a Hindu sub-caste called Veerashaiva Lingayats, are essentially followers of the 12th-century philosopher Saint Basavanna, who started a movement to help sections of society break away from the chains of caste.
• The Veerashaiva Lingayats are an amalgamation of the followers of Basavanna’s teachings and Veerashaivas who follow more traditional Hindu practices. 
• The Lingayat community has many sub-sects identified on the basis of the vocations they followed.

• The Yelahankanadu  Prabhus were Gowdas or tillers of the Land. They belonged to Gangatgar Vokkalu sect, the ancestors of which were migrants from Morasunadu near Kanjeepuram ,They used to speak Telugu.
• Fourth in succession from Rana Bhairave Gowda, founder of the dynasty of Avanti Nadu Prabhus and great grandson of Jaya Gowda, who established separate dynasty, the famous Yelahanka Nadu Prabhus, Kempe Gowda I ruled for 46 years commencing his reign from 1513
• Jaya Gowda accepted the sovergnity of the Vijayanagar emperor.
• Today the Vokkaliga community embraces within its fold the Morasu Vokkaligas, the Gangadicara Vokkaligas, Reddy Vokkaligas, Kunchitiga Vokkaligas, Hallikaru Vokkaligas and so on.

• Veerashaiva Lingayats have been provided 5% reservation under a special category called 3B. 
• A sub-sect called the Panchamasali Lingayats basically agriculturists who account for nearly 70% of Lingayats  have now risen in protest seeking reservations under the category 2A, which currently provides 15% reservations to backward castes.
• Vokkaliga community, which is currently in the 3A category, will be moved to a newly-created 2C category with 4% reservation.
• Karnataka currently has 32% quota for OBC, and 17% and 7% quota for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, respectively, taking the total to 56%.
• Lingayats are considered the most populous community in the state, followed by Vokkaligas. The new categories will not affect the existing reservation provided to other communities.
• The increase in reservation from the one granted currently to these communities — 4% for Vokkaligas and 5% for Lingayats  via redistribution of the EWS quota will be based on the population of various communities assessed by the Karnataka State Commission for Backward Classes