Maharashtra tried to incentivise Marathi-medium schools in Karnataka illegally: KBADA chairman
Bengaluru, Dec 2: Karnataka Border Area Development Authority (KBADA) chairman Dr C Somashekhara on Friday said a team from Maharashtra government had started a drive six months ago offering incentives to set up more Marathi-medium schools inside Karnataka in and around Belagavi district.
The campaign came to a halt after the KBADA protested saying that this was unlawful.
"A delegation from Maharashtra had come to the border regions of Karnataka and started a drive by making an offer of more grants and more facilities to those schools which impart education in Marathi," Somashekhara said addressing a press conference on Friday.
He was addressing reporters after releasing a booklet 'Sadhaneya Darshana' (A peek into the achievement) on KBADA completing 12 years in the presence of Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai.
Explaining the activities of KBADA, Somashekhara said the authority was established by the state government in 2010 to protect the interest of Kannadigas in the border regions outside Karnataka. According to him, there are 19 districts outside Karnataka that have a sizeable Kannada-speaking population.
"There are about 980 villages in 63 taluks of 19 districts where Kannadigas are living. The role of our authority is to protect their entity, culture and language. We are also doing the job of instilling confidence among them," Somashekhara said.
In the midst of a border row once again flaring up between Karnataka and Maharashtra over Belagavi, the KBADA chairman said the Maharashtra government's campaign happened six months ago.
"When we got the news that a team had conducted a survey in and around Belagavi and offered more grants to Marathi-medium schools and more incentives to the teachers, we swung into action due to which the campaign stopped," he explained.
Somashekhara said the authority along with some organisations in Belagavi protested saying that the Maharashtra delegation visiting Karnataka and opening more Marathi schools here was unlawful.
"The Maharashtra government had come inside Karnataka to open more Marathi schools in and around Belagavi. A conspiracy was hatched to offer more grants to the schools, incentives to teachers, attractive scholarship to the students and build hostels, which we have stopped," he claimed.
To a query, the retired IAS officer clarified that the team had come on its own and were not invited by the Karnataka government to do such activities.
The Maharashtra government has been demanding that Belagavi should be merged with it on the ground that the district has a sizeable Marathi population. However, the Karnataka government has been opposing it. Recently, the issue regarding Belagavi was heard in the Supreme Court as well.
The KBADA carries out its activities through the district collectors of the respective districts. To oversee the implementation of the schemes launched by the authority, a supervisory body has been set up, its chairman said.
To promote Kannada among children in the border region, KBADA is planning to deposit Rs 5,000 in the joint account of the Kannada medium student and the school. This has been conceptualised to ensure that the student studies in Kannada medium till they complete Class 10, he added.
"The student will study in the same school and will not go to any other medium school. By the time child completes 10th standard, there will be a decent amount in his account. This will attract children towards Kannada. It will benefit students as well as the school. We are planning this scheme," Somashekhara said.
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Young woman from MP who shot to fame during Kumbh found to be minor, case registered against husband
Khargone (MP) (PTI): The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes on Friday confirmed that a young woman from Madhya Pradesh who became famous due to her viral videos during the 2025 Maha Kumbh has been found to be a minor after an inquiry.
Citing the findings of an inquiry panel set up by the commission, local BJP leaders alleged that her interfaith marriage in Kerala last month was a case of "love Jihad", and sought legal action.
While the panel had submitted its report in March, ST commission chairman Antar Singh Arya confirmed its findings to the PTI on Friday.
A case for alleged kidnapping and offences under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act has already been registered against her husband, a Muslim man, at Maheshwar on the basis of the inquiry findings, police said.
The girl gained national fame after her videos while selling garlands and rudraksha at the Maha Kumbh went viral on social media and also earned her a role in a film.
The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes set up an inquiry panel after receiving a complaint on March 17 from Pratham Dubey, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, that she was a minor and was being exploited.
Maheshwar BJP MLA Rajkumar Mev and BJP mandal president Vikram Patel, armed with documents, told reporters on Friday that her marriage in Kerala was a case of "love Jihad" and she should be brought back home.
'Love jihad' is a term used by right-wing groups to allege a conspiracy by Muslim men to lure Hindu women into marriage to convert them to Islam.
Police said an investigation is underway, and further action would be taken accordingly.
The girl, who belongs to the nomadic Pardhi community, got married at a temple in Kerala in March. The interfaith marriage drew angry reactions from rightwing Hindu groups.
Her family members and film director Sanoj Mishra -- who had offered her a film role after she became famous -- too alleged that it was 'love Jihad'.
As per the inquiry conducted by the ST commission, records at the Maheshwar government hospital showed the woman's date of birth as December 30, 2009 which meant she was 16 years and two months old at the time of marriage, said Dubey, the complainant.
On a complaint filed by her father, police registered a case against the girl's husband at Maheshwar police station on March 25 for alleged kidnapping and under the POCSO Act and the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Police sources said that a separate case was also registered on March 24 under section 137(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (taking a minor from lawful custody of guardian without their consent) based on the the commission's findings.
