Mallikarjun flays Patil for dividing Veerashaiva-Lingayat house

Horticulture Minister S S Mallikarjun on Saturday welcomed the resolution passed by Akhila Bharat Veerashaiva Mahasabha rejecting the Cabinet decision on Lingayat issue, and instead seeking religious minority status to Veerashaiva-Lingayat community.

He was speaking to the reporters on the sidelines of the convocation of University of Horticultural Sciences here.

Hitting back at Water Resources Minister M B Patil's statement that Veerashaiva and Lingayats are two separate entities, Mallikarjun said, "Not all members are same in a house. A few try to keep the family united while a few others try to destroy it, the minister said making an indirect reference to Patil.

"Earlier, a proposal was sent to the Centre seeking separate religion tag for Veerashaiva-Lingayat communities. The Union government did not reject our request. So, we will seek the Centre again to reconsider our plea," Mallikarjun, son of Veerashaiva Mahasabha president Shamanur Shivashankarappa, said.

To a specific query, he said, "Let's not mix the Veerashaiava-Linagayat issue with politics."