Vishwanath flays Kaginele seer for backing Siddaramaiah

Hunsur MLA and former minister A H Vishwanath, who is a prominent Kuruba leader, took exception to the statements made by seers of mutts in support of politicians, especially Kaginele Kanakaguru Peetha seer Niranjananandapuri Swami, in support of former chief minister Siddaramaiah.

Speaking to reporters, he asked where was Niranjananandapuri Swami, when Siddaramaiah snubbed all Kuruba leaders without nominating a single Kuruba MLA as minister in his Cabinet.

“When I was in the Congress, Siddaramaiah, a new entrant to the party snubbed me and insulted me. Why didn’t the seer ask Siddaramaiah to mend his ways? Spiritual and religious leaders should speak about the problems of the people and against social evils. They should guide the government to function in the right direction. Let them strive for the welfare of the communities and not divide the society by supporting certain parties, castes and leaders,” he said.

Vishwanath said that while Mathe Mahadevi supported the Congress in the Assembly polls, Nanjavadootha Swamy of Gurugundeshwara Mutt is supporting Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy. Now, Niranjananandapuri Swami is supporting Siddaramaiah. The trend is not good for the society. It is not good for democracy, he said.

“I do not need the seer’s support. The people have stood by me, ensuring my victory in the Assembly election. Siddaramaiah lost in Chamundeshwari because he did not have the support of the people, despite having the support of the seer,” he said.

Vishwanath said it was not proper for the Karnataka Pradesh Kurubara Sangha to give a caste twist to the transfer of officials.

“It is an administrative matter and whenever a new government comes in, transfers are bound to be made,” he said.