On the occasion of the 22nd death anniversary of former Chief Minister S. Nijalingappa, Congress MLC Mohan Kondajji urged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to initiate measures to purchase the house of Nijalingappa in Chitradurga to develop it as a memorial.
Mr. Kondajji submitted a letter to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah at a programme organised to mark the death anniversary.
In the letter, Mr. Kondajji, who was associated with Mr. Nijalingappa during his old age, expressed concern that though the government had issued a notification about four years ago to develop the residence as a memorial, no measures were taken to implement it.
He alleged that though Mr. Nijalingappa’s son and grandson, who stay in the U.S., had visited Chitradurga to transfer the property to the government, the then Deputy Commissioner of the district had not completed the formalities. He urged the Chief Minister to intervene and ensure that the residence of Nijalingappa was purchased at the earliest, so that works can begin.
Mr. Kondajji, whose father Kondajji Basappa worked in Nijalingappa’s Cabinet, told The Hindu that the house of Nijalingappa had become weak and there was a fear of it collapsing if restoration works were not initiated at the earliest. He pointed out that Nijalingappa laid foundation for the development of modern Karnataka by executing various development projects.