The controversy over the naming of a circle in Huliyar town after Bhakti saint Kanakadasa is blowing up into a caste controversy ahead of the bypolls, following accusations that Law Minister J.C. Madhuswamy had “insulted” Eshwarananda Puri Swami, seer of Kanaka Gurupeeta, Kaginele.
It is alleged that in a meeting called on November 16 to discuss the issue of naming the circle, Mr. Madhuswamy had spoken “arrogantly” with the seer of the Kuruba community. Kanakadasa is revered by the Other Backward Classes community (OBC) as an icon. Kuruba Sanghagala Okkoota of Huliyar in Tumakuru district has called for Huliyar bundh on Thursday. There was a protest in Chitradurga on Wednesday.
With the BJP fielding three disqualified MLAs from the community in the upcoming bypolls — N. Nagaraju (MTB), Byrathi Basavaraj, and A.H. Vishwanath — the issue has assumed special significance. Leader of the Opposition Siddaramaiah belongs to the Kuruba community and has considerable following in the OBC communities, which the BJP hopes to make inroads into. Mr. Madhuswamy belongs to the Lingayat community.
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History of the incident
The incident dates back to 2006 when Huliyar Circle was renamed Kanakadasa Circle. The board with the name, however, was removed when work began on widening of NH 234. After completion of the road work, a new board displaying the name Kanakadasa Circle was installed.
However, a group of leaders from the Lingayat community wanted the Circle named after the late Shivakumara Swami, seer of Siddaganga mutt. Some leaders of the community went ahead and placed a board displaying the name of Shivakumara Swami on November 12, leading to tension. A peace meeting was organised on November 16 at the taluk panchayat office in Chikkanayakanahalli.
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It was at the meeting that Mr. Madhuswamy allegedly spoke in an “insulting” manner to Eshwarananda Puri Swami, when the seer demanded that Mr. Madhuswamy immediately take action to place the name board displaying the name of Kanakadasa or he would stage protests.
CM apologises
With the alleged comments turning into a controversy ahead of the bypolls, Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa stepped in to pacify the community, which forms a sizable part of the electorate.
He issued an apology and said the controversy over the naming of the circle after Kanakadasa was “unnecessary” and none were opposed to it. He added that while in power during the last term he had contributed significantly to the development of Kanaka Gurupeeta at Kaginele.