Govt failed to check smear campaign against Dharmasthala temple: B Y Vijayendra

BYV pointed out that Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar himself had stated in the Assembly that there was a 'big conspiracy.'

Mangaluru: In response to what the BJP perceives as 'smear campaign' against the Sri Kshetra Dharmasthala Manjunatha Swamy Temple and its Dharmadhikari D Veerendra Heggade, BJP leaders including MLAs, MLCs, and MPs, led by State BJP President BY Vijayendra, visited Shri Kshethra Dharmasthala and met the Dharmadhikari on Sunday.

Speaking to mediapersons, Vijayendra accused the state government of failing to contain the ongoing 'misinformation' and 'defamatory' campaign against Dharmasthala Temple, Lord Manjunatha, Annappa Swamy, and the Dharmadhikari.

He said the government should have acted promptly against the 'smear campaign', especially at a time when the SIT investigation into the mass burial case is underway.

“When the government constituted the SIT, we welcomed the move in the hope of a transparent probe that would bring out the truth. However, even as the investigation is in progress, attempts are being made to spread confusion and run smear campaigns against the temple, thereby hurting the sentiments of crores of devotees across the state,” he said. Vijayendra also demanded that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah tender an apology to the people for the government’s failure to curb the campaign, stressing that conspiracies targeting the religious shrine would not be tolerated.

He pointed out that Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar himself had stated in the Assembly that there was a “big conspiracy.” “If that is the case, both Shivakumar and the government must reveal the details of the conspiracy to the people,” Vijayendra added.

Responding to Minister Eshwar Khandre’s claim that the BJP was behind the controversy, Vijayendra said, “The BJP is not politicising the issue of Dharmasthala. The government must investigate those who are actually behind the smear campaign and identify the forces supporting such actions.”

He further noted that Dakshina Kannada district in-charge minister Dinesh Gundu Rao had admitted that the SIT was formed following pressure from Leftist organisations. “If this is true, it should also be investigated. I am not here to dictate how the probe should be conducted, but I have demanded that the government release an interim report on the ongoing SIT investigation,” he said.

MLCs CT Ravi, Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, Prathap Simha Nayak, and Kishore Kumar; Dakshina Kannada MP Capt Brijesh Chowta; and MLAs Vedavyas Kamath, Harish Poonja, Bhagirathi Murulya, Umanath Kotian, Bharath Shetty, Yashpal Suvarna, and others accompanied Vijayendra.