Chikkamagaluru, Jun 4: The Sangh Parivar has strongly opposed the Congress government's decision to set up a 3-member committee to examine the Bababudangiri-Datta Peetha controversy. The BJP and other saffron groups have charged the state government with adopting dilatory tactics to keep the controversy alive for political gain.
The government recently said a committee headed by a retired high court judge and comprising two non-officio members would look into title claims over the shrine located in a cave atop Bababudangiri hills in Chikkamagaluru district.
The government attributed the move to the Supreme Court's (SC) directive on finding an amicable solution to the controversy, which has turned into a communal tinderbox in recent years. While the Hindus want the shrine to be declared a Hindu place of worship, the hereditary administrator of the place, Syed Ghouse Mohiuddin Shah Khadri, has opposed it. On March 27, the SC gave the state government six weeks to find a solution, and that deadline ended on May 9.
It was in this backdrop that law minister T B Jayachandra announced the committee and said: "The views of both parties will be heard before the recommendations are made to the government."
But the BJP said the government's move is eyewash. The party's Sringeri MLA D N Jeevraraj said: "Setting up another committee is nothing but a political strategy to create rift among Hindus and Muslims with an eye on the elections. Instead of putting an end to the dispute, the government has taken the issue back to square one."
Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) sources said: "The Congress doesn't want to antagonize any community in the run-up to the polls."
BJP state general secretary and Chikkamagaluru MLA C T Ravi said: "The Siddaramaiah government has adopted former Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao's strategy of putting controversial issues on the backburner by setting up a committee."
Comments
Add new comment