New Delhi, Jan 31: The Hoysala Temples of Belur, Halebid and Somnathapura in Karnataka have been finalised as India's nomination for World Heritage List for the year 2022-2023, the Union Culture Ministry said on Monday.

The 'Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysala' are on UNESCO's Tentative list since April 15, 2014, and stand testimony to the rich historical and cultural heritage of this country.

On Monday, Permanent Representative of India to UNESCO Vishal V Sharma formally submitted the nomination of Hoysala Temples to UNESCO Director of World Heritage Lazare Eloundou.

Following the submission of the dossier, technical scrutiny will be carried out.

In a tweet, Sharma said, "India is proud to nominate The Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas for UNESCO's World Heritage List! Art historians recognize the exceptional sculptural artistry of the ensembles to be among the masterpieces of Asian art."

The site evaluation will happen in September/October this year and the dossier will be taken up for consideration in July/August next year.

G Kishan Reddy, the Union Minister of Culture, Tourism and Development of Northeastern Region, said, "This is a great moment for India to see the Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas temples being submitted for inscription in the World Heritage List."

"The government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is committed to both 'vikas' and 'virasat' (heritage).

"Our efforts in protecting our heritage is evident from the work the government has been putting in inscribing both our tangible and intangible heritage and also repatriating the cultural heritage that was stolen or taken away from India," the Minister added.

All the three Hoysala temples are protected monuments of the Archaeological Survey of India and therefore their conservation and maintenance will be done by its, culture ministry said.

The state government will ensure the conservation of state-protected monuments which are around these three monuments since it would add to the visual integrity of the place, it said.

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Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.

In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.

Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.

Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.

According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.

He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.

He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.

Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.

He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.

Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.

He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.