Seers demand law against superstitious practices

November 17, 2014 02:12 pm | Updated November 18, 2014 11:19 am IST - Bengaluru

Progressive  religious  heads under the banner of ' Pragatipara Matadeeshara Vedike' supported by progressive thinkers staging a hunger strike at Freedom park in Bangalore on Tuesday.  Photo: Bhagya Prakash K

Progressive religious heads under the banner of ' Pragatipara Matadeeshara Vedike' supported by progressive thinkers staging a hunger strike at Freedom park in Bangalore on Tuesday. Photo: Bhagya Prakash K

Over 150 heads of religious institutions from across the State — backed by rationalist groups, Dalit organisations and intellectuals — launched a three-day fast on Monday, demanding the promulgation of a law against superstitious practices.

Speaking at the launch of the stir, Veerabhadra Chennamalla Swami of Nidumamidi Math in Bagepalli, said it was a “satwik” agitation for a “social justice cause” and not restricted to any religious faith or belief system.

Shivarudra Swami of Beli Math said that superstitious practices that exploited gullible people were only “the outer shell of religion without any core substance”.

Panditaradhya Shivacharya Swami of Sanehalli Math said that “influential” religious institutions should not get immunity from the law because of their proximity to political power.

The other demands of the seers included banning discriminatory practices such as made snana, pankti bheda and the custom in Kadu Golla community of keeping menstruating women and young mothers out of their homes.

Activists of the Karnataka Jnana Vijnana Samiti, Dalit Sangharsha Samiti (Samatavada) and pourakarmika unions gathered at Freedom Park to express their support. Eminent persons who lent their support included K. Marulasiddappa, K.Allama Prabhu Bettadur, C.S. Dwarakanath and N. Prabha.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.