Hundreds of devotees from different parts of the State took part in the procession held as part of Datta Mala Abhiyana, conducted by Sri Rama Sene, here on Sunday, and visited Sri Guru Dattatreya Bababudan Swami Dargah. Sri Rama Sene has been conducting Datta Jayanti and Datta Mala Abhiyana for the past few years now.
The procession began at Shankara Mutt at Basavanahalli Extension and concluded at Bolarameshwara Temple, where the devotees held a meeting, before leaving for the cave shrine at Bababudangiri. They travelled to the shrine in vehicles.
Pramod Mutalik, founder of the Sene, speaking to presspersons, said the organisation would continue its struggle to ensure the cave shrine was declared a Hindu place of worship. “I wish to convey to the State government that we will not stop this struggle until the mission is completed. If we have to give our blood for the cause, we are ready for it,” he said.
Mr. Mutalik also suggested that Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy resolve the dispute as his father and former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda did in Hubballi with regard to the Idga Maidan. “There is a separate dargah in Nagenahalli. Let that be the place of worship for those who visit the dargah and the Datta Peetha be declared a Hindu place of worship. The government should resolve this soon,” he said.
The Datta Mala Abhiyana concluded with devotees visiting the cave shrine atop Bababudangiri. Hundreds of people from parts of Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Hassan, Bagalkot, Hubballi and Dharwad visited the shrine on the day. The Chikkamagaluru district administration had provided basic amenities for the visitors. Policemen were deployed at the hill station to avoid any untoward incidents.
