Lingayat-Veershaiva row: No Congress members on expert panel says Siddaramaiah

The Karnataka government has no intention of splitting the Veerashaiva- Lingayat religion. An experts' panel has been formed to look into the demand for a separate religion tag for Lingayats.

"There is nobody from the Congress party in the committee," clarified Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.  

The CM spoke to media people at Shirahatti Assembly constituency where he participated in the Sadhaneya Samavesha on Monday.

He was reacting to the accusations by certain Lingayat seers that the government was attempting to split people of the unified Lingayat-Veerashaiva  community.      

The panel has only experts like retired judge Justice H N Nagamohan Das. "They are not Congress members," the CM stressed.  

The CM also announced that from January 1, 2018, development works would begin in 1.5 lakh taluks. Some of these projects will function out of rented offices for the interim, he informed.  

Ball in Parrikar's court

As for the Mahadayi river water sharing dispute, Siddaramaiah said that 'the ball is in Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar's court'.  

'We are willing to go wherever he invites us on a date that he fixes," he reiterated.