Blaming politicians for continued neglect of the North Karnataka region, Sri Siddhalinga Swami of Tontadarya Math, Gadag, said that the demand for separate statehood might become inevitable if the apathy continued.
Speaking to press persons on the sidelines of the convention of Lingayat community in Hubballi on Sunday, the Swami held the politicians from North Karnataka region responsible for neglecting the region.
Although the Dr. Nanjundappa Committee on Regional Imbalance had made recommendations for improvement of the backward areas, the sanction of funds and utilisation of the same for the development of the region was not satisfactory, the Swami said.
Referring to the sorry state of roads near Sedam, which he had to take recently while on tour, the Swami said that despite the constituency being represented by medical education minister, nothing had been done to improve it and this was the attitude of the many of the elected representatives from North Karnataka.
To a query, the time was not yet ripe for creating up a forum to fight for separate statehood but going by the developments soon the right time might come. “If there is no improvement, then seeking separate statehood might become inevitable”, the swami said.
Earlier during the address at the convention, the Swami referred to the apathy and lack of unity among the 94 legislators and 13 MPs from North Karnataka in raising the issues pertaining to the region in the legislature and getting the works done. Despite having spent crores of rupees on Suvarna Vidhana Soudha till date, nothing had been done to get the government offices shifted to Belagavi, he said.
