Overdosing on anything inevitably proves fatal – even good intentions. This is the case with political formations that are trying to pander to people’s greed in the hope of retaining or attaining power. The latest example of this is the reservation promised by the Congress government in Karnataka for Kannadigas in private sector jobs. Although it is not yet clear how exactly this is planned, with the Chief Minister and his deputy making different claims, it is not a good idea. It has already sent shivers down the spines of industrialists, who have expressed their concerns, leading to a partial retraction that it will not be applicable to ‘technical jobs’.
It has been tried before. Congress stalwart ND Tiwari when Chief Minister had made a somewhat similar announcement for residents of Uttarakhand. Fortunately for the state, it could not be applied even for class four jobs. At that time, Uttarakhand was only beginning its journey as a separate state with not much of a developed economy, so there was not much to worry about in terms of industries migrating out. However, in the case of Karnataka, such a decision could seriously impact it as one of India’s more developed states. In today’s highly competitive environment, states are working hard to provide ease of doing business so that they can attract investment. Adopting regressive measures just to stay ahead in Karnataka’s divided politics is not very smart.
The Kannadiga chauvinism that seems to have become the flavour of the day goes against the cosmopolitan nature of the state and Bengaluru. The latter was among the first cities in the South to have acquired a pan-India culture. As early as the seventies, probably even before, its restaurants used to have bands that sang in at least five languages – English, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam and Tamil. The city’s rush hour used to be when the shows in cinemas ended, with Hindi movies being the most popular. It was the first preference shooting destination for Mumbai filmmakers outside of their city. Then it became the centre for IT companies with a global footprint.
And now there will be need to have sub-quotas in the quotas. There will be political quarrels over that. There is no way that companies will not recruit the best – they will gradually wind down operations. New enterprises will choose other states, if not other countries, because this madness can spread. And all because some politicians wish to score points over others in their own party.
