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Ministers from other castes back demand for Lingayat religion

Last Updated 26 July 2017, 20:22 IST

Senior ministers across communities in the Siddaramaiah Cabinet on Wednesday backed the demand for declaring Veerashaiva-Lingayat as a separate religion.

At the state Cabinet meeting held here on Wednesday, many of the ministers are understood to have told Siddaramaiah that the state government should support the demand for a separate religion for the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community.
 
A team of five Lingayat ministers led by Higher Education Minister Basavaraj Rayareddy has already announced embarking on a state-wide tour next month to campaign for the cause.

Speaking to reporters, Energy Minister and prominent Vokkaliga leader D K Shivakumar criticised the BJP for opposing the demand. He said BJP state president B S Yeddyurappa was accusing the Congress of trying to split the Lingayat community. “It was Yeddyurappa who tried to split the community by including a sub-sect of Lingayats under 2A Category so as to provide them higher quota of reservation,” he said.

Social Welfare Minister H Anjaneya, a Dalit, said it is the duty of the government to respond to a demand by a community. Lingayat community has submitted a memorandum to the government and it will look into it, he added.

Medical Education Minister Dr Sharan Prakash Patil, who belongs to the Lingayat community, said neither the government nor the Congress has shown interest in according religion status to Lingayat. The community leaders are demanding it. Akhila Bharatha Veerashaiva Mahasabha has requested the chief minister to recommend to the Centre to accord the religion status, he added.

Earlier in the day, Siddaramaiah said he is yet to receive an official memorandum from those seeking separate religion tag. “Let them submit a memorandum... We will examine it,” he told reporters who sought to know whether he had sent a recommendation to the Centre in this regard.

CM dividing Lingayats: Shettar
Senior BJP leader Jagadish Shettar on Wednesday charged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah with conspiring to divide the Lingayat community by raking up the issue of separate religion status to Veerashaiva-Lingayat. The chief minister has formed a team of Cabinet ministers to campaign for separate religion status to Veerashaiva-Lingayat. “None of the ministers had time to tour the drought-affected places. Now, they want to tour the state for dividing the community...It proves that the government is indulging in politics, and I am sure it will backfire in the coming days,” he told reporters in Bengaluru. On seeking to know his stand on the issue, he said views of any particular individual is not important.

Govt initiates process
The state government has initiated the process recommending the Centre to accord separate religion status to Veerashiva-Lingayat. The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) has in a letter dated July 19 directed the Backward Classes Welfare department to look into a memorandum submitted by Lingayat Mahasabha to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and take appropriate action. 

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(Published 26 July 2017, 20:22 IST)

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