The Belagavi District Kannada Organisations Action Committee president, Ashok Chandargi, has welcomed the suggestion of Shripal Sabnis, President of the 89th Akhil Bharatiya Marathi Sahitya Sammelan, for an out-of-court settlement of the boundary dispute between Maharashtra and Karnataka.
Dr. Sabnis, in his address at the valedictory of the convention which concluded at Pimpri near Pune on Monday, has reportedly suggested that BJP government in Maharashtra could use its good offices with the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, and seek the latter’s intervention for an early out-of-court settlement: “We welcome Dr. Sabnis’s suggestion as a solution to the dispute has been long overdue and dogged by uncertainties of sorts.,” Mr. Chandargi said while talking to The Hindu here on Tuesday.
But, he wondered whether Mr. Modi would be able to solve the dispute that has come to stay for more than five decades as far as Maharashtra was concerned. Mr. Modi had not been able to solve the dispute on sharing of Mahadayi basin waters among the riparian States of Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra although he was being repeatedly requested to do so.
Referring to the invitation extended by Marathi leaders from Belagavi to the National Congress Party president Sharad Pawar to accept civic honour at a function proposed to be organised in the city soon, Mr. Chandargi said Mr. Pawar had already “burnt his fingers” in 1986 as his intervention in the boundary row boomeranged. Also, the MES had rejected his proposal to establish ‘Navi Belgaum’ near Shinoli of Kolhapur district across the Karnataka border in the past. “Now, MES once again wanted to use Mr. Pawar.”
‘Not maintainable’
Mr. Chandargi said the Karnataka government had time and again maintained that there was no boundary dispute and that it was already resolved consequent to the Mahajan Commission report. Both the Houses of the Karnataka legislature had also acknowledged this by passing resolutions accepting this report. Also, Karnataka is of the view that Maharashtra’s suit was not maintainable at all and that issues of boundary dispute could be resolved by Parliament alone.
