Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has urged the people to follow the ideology of Buddha as it is the only way to root out terrorism in the world.
Inaugurating a conference on Buddha at Jyothigowdanapura in Chamarajanagar taluk on Sunday, Mr. Siddaramaiah stressed the need to eradicate discrimination in society based on caste and religion. Although the 12th century social reformer, Basaveshwara, had fought against the caste system and superstition, certain social evils had not disappeared. B.R.Ambedkar embraced Buddhism because it allowed people to live with equality and mutual respect, he said. He also urged the people tofollow the ideologies of B.R. Ambedkar and Lord Buddha.Responding to a charter of demands submitted to him, Mr. Siddaramaiah said the government had asked the Chamarajanagar Deputy Commissioner to conduct a survey of the land leased out to Adikarnataka Sangha for establishing the Nalanda University and Reseach and Study Centre on Buddhism. Steps would be initiated to renew the lease period to grant 50 acres of land to Adi Karnataka Sangha for a long period. The demand for a grant of Rs. 10 crore for establishing the Nalanda University would be considered only if the work on the project was taken up.
The Chief Minister visited Amruta Bhumi and paid floral tributes to late leader of the Karnatraka Rajya Raitha Sangha Nanjundaswamy.
To a question, Mr. Siddaramaiah said a decision on reducing the bus fares would be taken after consulting the Finance Department. The officials had been asked to assess the financial implications before arriving at a conclusion in this regard, he said.
Later, Mallikarjun Kharge, who was present, also spoke on similar lines and urged the people to follow the teachings of Lord Buddha and the principles of B.R. Ambedkar.
