Neoliberal-Hindutva Cocktail of Karnataka
Vasanth N K
KARNATAKA minister’s hate-speech that hit national headlines and the budget presented last week clearly brought forth the Karnataka BJP government’s dogged pursuit of neoliberal-Hindutva agenda. Minister for higher education C N Aswathnarayana in a rally in Mandya gave a call to ‘finish off’ Congress leader Siddaramaiah the way “Vokkaliga chieftains Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda finished off Tipu Sultan”.
According to recently revised history of Hindutva brigade, Tipu did not die fighting British, but was killed by Vokkaliga chieftains for betraying Mysore Wodeyars! Neither the chief minister nor the prime minister or the BJP leadership have said anything about this open call for violent attacks on a former chief minister and leader of the opposition. Nor was any suo moto action on hate-speech taken despite Supreme Court’s clear directives to do so. Despite huge public outcry, the minister did not withdraw his statement, only expressed regret for hurting the sentiments of Siddaramaiah.
PHONY BUDGET
Although the state government which has a life of only a month and a half, was only supposed to present a vote on account, not a budget outlining major policies or outlay for the year, it was presented as such. It is being even paraded as an election manifesto. Many promises in the budget would surely go the way like the last full budget, in which 57 of the 206 promises were not fulfilled. For example, most of the health related promises made have not been implemented. Very few ‘Namma Clinics’ were opened at the fag end, instead of promised clinics in each ward in Bangalore and other cities. 50-100-bed critical care blocks in many district centres also were never heard again. Some schemes (eg, Mukhya Mantri Arogya Vahini for health camps twice a year in villages) were renamed (‘Mane manege Arogya’) and recycled. Some promises like free bus pass for students and women workers have been announced in the last budget, which hit many roadblocks in implementation. The same has been recycled in another garb in this budget.
Last budget announcements included Rs 500 crores for upgradation of schools, which is hardly even remembered. In the floods last year, 42,000 schools were damaged, out of which 22,000 were severely damaged. This budget promises repair of 2,777 schools and construction of 8000 new rooms. What about the rest? Farmers are yet to receive the much tom-tommed crop damage insurance for the last two years’ floods. Meanwhile Rs 1000 crores is allotted in this budget for ‘comprehensive development and renovation of temples and mutts’, which is more than doubled from last year’s Rs 425 crores. Construction of grand Rama mandira at Ramanagar district (neighbouring Bangalore) and Hanuman temple complex in Anjanadri Hill in Koppala district (in Hyderabad Karnataka region) have been announced in the budget!
The Economic Survey presented prior to budget has exposed BJP’s ‘double engine’ slogan fully. According to the survey, share of contribution from central grants in the budget has declined from 19.9 per cent (2021-22) to 11.7 per cent in 2022-23. Karnataka could see a decline in central tax transfers by 24.5 per cent in the 15th Finance Commission compared to the 14th. Grant-in-aid from the centre has declined by 25 per cent from last year. Outstanding debt has increased from 21.35 per cent to 26.64 per cent of the GSDP in the pandemic period.
It is clear from the above that the BJP state government has perfected a ‘neoliberal Hindutva cocktail’. Expenditures on physical well-being of people stagnate or decline. Capital expenditure (which can generate mega contracts) that helps corporates is the new development mantra. It is not only seen in the budgets, but also in the overall agenda of the government for the last three and a half years.
WEAKENING WELFARE SCHEMES
As pointed out in the last report, shutting down or weakening of existing welfare schemes is one of the features, as well as a reason for massive anti-incumbency towards the BJP state government. Free rice allocation of 10 kg for BPL card holders has been reduced to 5 kg. The reduction is due to cutting of state contribution of 5 kg. Similarly allocation for Antyodaya has been cut from 50kg to 30kg.
The record of this government has been most miserable in MNREGA scheme implementation, a lifeline to address rural distress. Average days of employment provided per household have fallen from 49.6 (in FY 2018-19) to 40.89 (in FY 2022-23 as seen till February 21, 2023). The total number of households which completed 100 days of wage employment has drastically fallen from 2.11 lakhs (in FY 2018-19) to 1.76 lakhs (in FY 2019-20) and meagre 0.27 lakh (in FY 2022-23 as seen till February 21, 2023). The number of households which completed 100 days of work as percentage of total households that worked has fallen from 10 per cent (in FY 2018-19) to 0.95 per cent (in FY 2022-23). Even among those who worked, as high as 60 per cent have not received payment due to many obstacles/challenges present already in the scheme and more like the online fingerprint attendance twice a day etc, added by this government. State government has also cut allowances provided for tool sharpening and travel to work place. Those paid also see a delay of up to six months.
Earlier the Congress government had opened Indira Canteens in Bangalore in each ward that provide cheap breakfast for Rs 5 and lunch for Rs 10 which were quite popular with urban poor and workers. 174 such canteens and 15 such mobile canteens were there. This service was being run by three private agencies, with a subsidy from the state government. However, the BJP government has stopped subsidy to this scheme. As the scheme was popular, BBMP stepped in and was running it with its own funds. But it is increasingly finding it difficult to fund it and hence service providers are not getting paid for months. Consequently the quantity and quality is suffering. Recently all mobile canteens were shut. Other canteens are also being put to slow death.
Expansion of both MNREGA scheme and Indira canteens with appropriate funding could have ameliorated severe hunger crisis of urban and rural poor to a large extent, especially during Covid pandemic. But that was not the agenda of the BJP government. It had a different agenda, of pushing through laws which would have been difficult under normal circumstances, to mount severe attacks on farmers, workers and all people. That is the next major feature of the BJP government.
PUSHING THROUGH ANTI-FARMER ANTI-WORKER LAWS
The BJP government used Covid pandemic and most specifically the repressive lockdown period, to push through three anti-farmer laws, three anti-worker laws and two anti-people laws. Karnataka Land Reforms (Second Amendment) Act, 2020 lifted the upper ceiling of the agricultural land an individual or family could own; removed restrictions on sale of agricultural land to one not involved in agriculture; removed restrictions on sale for land allotted to SC/STs. The Karnataka Land Revenue (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022, has a provision where, if the deputy commissioner fails to give his or her decision and issues the order within 15 days from the date of receipt of the application, the approval for diversion of land use would be deemed to have been granted by the deputy commissioner. It was also to be implemented from retrospective effect! The two bills have opened up vast tracts of agricultural land for purchase by real estate interests and contract farming by corporates, undoing whatever land reforms were implemented in Karnataka. It is aimed at legalising land grab and wiping out many cases pending against real estate sharks and other vested interests. The Karnataka Agricultural Produce Marketing (Regulation and Development) Amendment Bill is similar to the central bill which had to be withdrawn after the heroic farmers’ movement blockading Delhi. This bill, as is well known, facilitates handing over agriculture marketing to corporates, destroys system of purchase at MSP and ruins small and medium peasants.
Karnataka Prevention of Slaughter and Preservation of Cattle Act 2020 is the perfect example of ‘neoliberal Hindutva cocktail ’ of Karnataka BJP. The law prohibits to sell, transport, slaughter, trade all cattle except buffaloes above the age of 13 and those that are terminally ill. Those who violate this law can be imprisoned for up to seven years, and fined upto Rs 5 lakhs. The law criminalises livelihood of cattle traders, leather workers, and those engaged in the skin-curing and tannery industries, mostly employing dalits and Muslims. The law also legalises vigilantism being used on them by Hindutva brigade. Apart from distressing small farmers, it seeks to destroy small businesses and small traders in meat industry. Apart from attacking livelihoods of minorities, it seeks to handover animal husbandry and meat industry also to the corporates.
At the same time, the government is reluctant to process applications of 45 lakh Bagair Hukum cultivators for giving them rights for the land which they have been cultivating for long.
Covid pandemic was also used to push three anti-worker laws in one ordinance. An amendment to Industrial Disputes Act 1947 increased the limit of the number of workers, over which prior permission of the government is required for lay-off, retrenchment and closures. The limit was raised from 100 to 300, thereby enabling 90 per cent of factories in Karnataka to practice hire and fire at will. Similarly Factories Act 1948 was amended to increase the limit of the number of workers for exemption from factory inspection. Exemption limit was raised from 10 to 20 for factories with electricity thereby endangering workers of 41 per cent of factories. The limit was raised from 20 to 40 for factories without electricity thereby endangering workers of 64 per cent of factories. An amendment to Contract Labour (Regulation and Prohibition) Act 1970 raised the threshold upper limit for statutory registration and licensing for engaging contract workers to 50 which was earlier 20. The amendment to the Karnataka Industrial Employment (Standing order) rules 1961 was done to introduce ‘fixed-term employment’. The crux of these laws is a frontal attack on whatever little legal protection workers had and make their work more precarious, and is a brutal attack on trade unions also. However there was a joint movement of all trade unions against the ordinance. When the ordinance was introduced as a bill in the legislative council, it was defeated and hence failed to become a law.
The Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Act and implementation of New Education Policy 2020 in a tearing hurry – are two more laws in the arsenal of the state government. More about them in the next report.
