Hindu ritual, Islamic prayer held at Gangolli GP premises; BJP leaders allegedly object to ‘Dua’
Udupi: A row has erupted in Gangolli gram panchayat of Kundapura taluk following the conduct of religious prayers during an oath-taking ceremony. The ceremony saw both a Hindu ‘Homa’ ritual performed by the elected Hindu members and a religious prayer by a Muslim cleric.
Byndoor MLA Gururaj Gantihole, along with members of the Hindu Hitha Rakshana Samiti, staged a protest outside the Panchayat office on Friday, condemning the prayer offered by the Moulwi.
During the oath-taking ceremony on Thursday, the designated president and the vice-president allegedly held religious prayers -- “Homa” ritual and a Muslim prayer -- on the gram panchayat premises, as reported by Deccan Herald.
Gantihole, addressing the protest, accused the Congress of forming an alliance with the SDPI and demanded action against the party for conducting religious prayers within the Panchayat building. He criticised the Congress for what he called a lack of ideological commitment, alleging that the party facilitated “illegal activities in government buildings” for political gain.
“On one hand, the Congress calls for banning the SDPI. On the other hand, it has entered into an alliance with the SDPI for coming to power. By compromising their principles for power, the Congress has shown that their priority lies solely in authority,” DH quoted Gantihole as saying.
In the elections held in December for the 33 seats in the Gram Panchayat, the Congress-supported candidates secured 12 seats, BJP-supported candidates won 12, while SDPI-backed candidates won six seats. With the support of the SDPI, the Congress came to power, with Congress-supported candidate Jayanthi Kharvi elected as president and SDPI-supported member Mohammed Tabraz as vice-president.
Reacting to the protest, Mohammed Tabraz defended the prayers, stating, "While president Jayanthi Kharvi held a ‘Homa,’ our religious leader offered a ‘Dua’ for the welfare of the village. However, BJP leaders raised an objection to offering the ‘Dua.’
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Karnataka Assembly passes bill on Palace Grounds amid opposition protest
Bengaluru, Mar 6 (PTI): The Karnataka Assembly on Thursday passed the Bangalore Palace (Utilisation and Regulation of Land) Bill, reaffirming state ownership over 472 acres and 16 guntas of land here, amid protests by the opposition BJP.
During the discussion, Karnataka Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil said the state government would have to provide Rs 200 crore worth of Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) for each acre of land, which means that for 15 acres, Rs 3,000 crore worth of TDR would be issued.
“If we accept it, then this 2-km stretch of road will become the costliest road in the world. If we accept it then how are we going to develop the city in later stages? How will you carry out development works?” asked Patil.
He also pointed out that this question was raised not only under the Congress government but also during the previous BJP regime.
However, the BJP-led cabinet has opposed the project.
ALSO READ: Budget session: Law Min. HK Patil introduces Microfinance bill in Karnataka assembly
“Suppose we agree to it then, what will be the valuation of the 472 acres? It will be lakhs and lakhs of crores of rupees. Can we accept?” Patil wondered.
The Minister said the government had previously exercised its executive powers to issue an ordinance, which was approved by the Governor. Now the government is bringing a bill with two amendments.
“In this bill, we have made provisions either to develop or drop the road development work,” Patil explained.
However, BJP state president B Y Vijayendra and BJP MLA Arvind Bellad opposed the move, alleging that the government was targetting Yaduveer Krishna Datta Chamaraja Wadiyar, the scion of the Mysuru royal family, and the BJP MP from Mysuru-Kodagu constituency out of political vendetta.
“We talk of 472 acres of Mysuru Maharaja but here there are many Maharajas who too own 400 acres, 500 acres and thousands of acres of land, which is known to everyone,” Bellad said.
He slammed the Congress government, saying political power should not be misused for personal vendetta.
“Why (the then Deputy Chief Minister) Siddaramaiah brought the law in 1996 pertaining to the Bangalore Palace? Why are you setting eyes on the Bangalore Palace?” he asked.
Vijayendra charged that Wadiyar won the election on BJP ticket so the state government realised that it should acquire it.
“This bill has been brought for political vengeance. We are not discussing whether Rs 3,000 crore is exorbitant or not but the moment Yaduveer became MP, the state government woke up. You should be ashamed. This house should not be used for political vendetta,” he said.
Intervening, Minister Priyank Kharge said Vijayendra should not have raised it because the intention behind building the road was noble.
According to him, the BJP too had the same plan when it was in power.
He sought to know whether thousands of crores of rupees be spent on a road which should have cost significantly less.
In response, BJP MLA B A Basavaraj (Byrathi) said issuing TDR will not be a burden on the state government and appealed to the ruling Congress to reconsider its stance.
Minister Ramalinga Reddy too explained that the Karnataka government acquired the entire land way back in 1996.
The Mysuru royal family went to the High Court, which gave ruling in favour of the state government. The royal family then approached the Supreme Court, where the case is still going on, the Minister pointed out.
“The final judgment is pending in the SC to decide whether the acquisition was right or wrong. If the SC says it’s the royal family’s property then let it be so. If the order is in the state government’s favour then we can take a decision. The bill is only about it,” Reddy explained.
Speaker U T Khader then called for a voice vote and the bill was passed by the Assembly amidst opposition BJP’s discontent.
