In namma Bengaluru, goes the joke, more people know Java than Kannada. Outsiders have poured into the city and taken it over and this has been a sore point with many locals for as long as anyone can remember. So, it’s not hard to understand why the Karnataka government attempted to ram through a bill mandating that 75 per cent of non-management jobs in all companies should be reserved for locals and even a huge 50 per cent at management levels across Karnataka.

Barely 48 hours later, the government was racing backwards at high speed. Inevitably, it was hit by a furious barrage of protests from the infotech and other sectors which have made the state their home. Nasscom pointed out forcefully that the tech sector contributed 25 per cent of the state’s GDP. “Restrictions could force companies to relocate as local skilled talent becomes scarce,” it warned in unambiguous terms.

Nasscom made it crystal clear that Karnataka was flashing a carving knife at the goose that laid the golden infotech eggs. Talent was the key factor that drives the infotech industry, it noted. “In today’s highly competitive landscape, businesses will locate where talent is as attracting skilled workers is crucial for success. Globally, there is a huge shortage of skilled talent and Karnataka,despite the large pool, is no exception.”

Karnataka’s neighbours, which have always been envious of the state’s tech prowess, watched almost gleefully as the Sons of the Soil employment drama unfolded. “Welcome to Andhra Pradesh. We have lots of young talent and you will be benefited under @ncbn (Chandrababu Naidu) government,” said one Andhra Pradesh entrepreneur. In Kerala, some expressed the hope that Bangalore’s tech industries would move there.

It must be said that Karnataka has always had strong anti-outsider instincts. These feelings are particularly strong in Bangalore which has a huge percentage of its population from outside the state.

In December last year the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) destroyed non-Kannada signboards. Chief minister Siddaramaiah responded by promising that 60 per cent of all signboards would be in Kannada. The KRV’s motto is unambiguous: “Kannada is caste, Kannada is religion and Kannada is God.” Its leader is a fiery activist, T.A. Narayana Gowda. The state government has been on edge ever since the demonstrations and signboard vandalism in December.

The harsh fact is that Karnataka isn’t the first to attempt to roll out a Sons of the Soil policy that would favour the locals of the state. Rooting for the Sons of the Soil happens almost inevitably in any city or region where industrial or corporate growth is greater than in other parts of the country.

There are constitutional barriers to Sons of the Soil policies. But even more importantly, any state that attempts to bring in such restrictions must calculate if such laws would act as a disincentive to new companies setting up home in the state – and thus defeat the purpose of increasing employment opportunities. For tech companies, Bangalore has a magnetic appeal because it has developed a vast reservoir of talent, which can’t really be matched anywhere else in the country. For young executives, too, there are more job opportunities in the city. All this would certainly be put at risk by Sons of the Soil legislation that restricts available employment.

Says T.V. Mohandas Pai: “If you want to promote Kannadigas for jobs, spend more money on higher education. Give more training to them. Not like this. What are you trying to achieve by this?”

Turn back the clock to the 1960s when Bal Thackeray built his Shiv Sena on the premise that Maharashtrians were getting a raw deal and being kept out of the well-paid jobs in Mumbai. He articulated the view that the city’s white-collar jobs were being monopolised by outsiders – in this case largely south Indians – who were depriving the Marathi ‘manoos’ who should have been given a greater share of the corporate employment cake.

More recently, Haryana in 2020 attempted to pass a law that 75 per cent of jobs paying less than Rs 30,000 had to be held for state locals. Again the state faced a huge corporate backlash and was forced to back down. Similarly, the Andhra Pradesh government under Jagan Mohan Reddy attempted to legislate a Sons of the Soil policy but was forced onto the backfoot by the courts.

It isn’t hard to understand the attraction of Sons of the Soil policies for vote-hungry politicians. But they have to keep one eye on the Indian Constitution which, under Article 19 (I) (e), mandates that citizens have the right to “reside and settle in any part of the territory of India”. That certainly implies the right to work and to equality of opportunity. There have been, over the decades, several court rulings on the issue.

Bangalore could possibly be the country’s most cosmopolitan city. The tech industry has a huge appeal for youngsters on the lookout for good jobs. The tech industry needs the best talent in India – and possibly the world. Anything less than that would leave it hobbled against the competition and send its talent scurrying to other corners of India and the globe.