Last Update: February 13, 2023, 12:17 IST
Channabasawananda Swami of the All India Lingayat Synod has called for a one-day ‘dharna’ on February 20 in Bengaluru on this issue. (News18)
Channabasawananda Swamy of the All India Lingayat Coordination said that now that the BJP is in power both in the state and at the Centre, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai should again send the recommendation to the Center and the position should be approved.
Amid mounting pressure on the government to increase reservation from various communities, Lingayats have demanded that the Basavaraj Bommai government request the Center to grant them a separate Lingayat status.
Addressing the media, Channabasawananda Swamy of the All India Lingayat Coordination said that now that the BJP is in power both in the state and at the Centre, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai should again send the recommendation to the Center and approve the situation.
“The previous Congress government led by Siddaramaiah had sent a recommendation to the BJP-led central government in 2018 to grant Lingayatism the status of an independent religion. However, it was sent back by the central government. Now that the BJP is in power both in the state and at the Centre, we want Bommai to send the recommendation again to the Center and get it approved and give us religious minority status,” said the pontiff.
Questioning why Lingayats cannot be treated as a separate religion while Sikhs and Jains can have separate identities, the priest demanded that the community be treated as a religious minority and 12th-century social reformer Basavanna be recognized as the founder of the new religion. Be made a cultural symbol.
The seer has given a call for a day-long ‘dharna’ on February 20 in Bengaluru and invited other religious heads as well as political leaders to participate in the event, stressing that it It is a non-political gathering.
The demands of various communities have put the Bommai government on the back foot, especially ahead of elections. Late last year, the Panchamasali community in Karnataka staged a massive protest during the winter session in Belagavi demanding 2A status for the community. Vokkaligas, a major community in Karnataka, are also demanding 2A status along with the Kuruba community who are demanding to be classified under Scheduled Tribes.
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