The Hindu : Karnataka News : People of Chikmagalur heave a sigh of relief

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Dec 28, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka

People of Chikmagalur heave a sigh of relief

By Our Staff Correspondent

HASSAN, DEC. 27. The people of Chikmagalur district are relieved that the controversial Datta Jayanti celebration at Bababudangiri has ended peacefully.

Though the response to the "Government-sponsored'' celebration was poor, with the Bharatiya Janata Party and other members of the Sangh Parivar boycotting it, the district administration conducted the programme by only allowing religious practices which were in vogue before 1975.

Groups with Leftist and Rightist ideologies now have a presence in the Chikmagalur.

While naxalites are fighting against the eviction of tribal people from the Kudremukh National Park, and rightist forces, especially members of the Sangh Parivar, have intensified their activities in the district.

Enthused by its triumph in five Assembly segments under the Chikmagalur Lok Sabha Constituency in the last elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party is trying to establish a hold on Bababudangiri, the location of the shrine of the Sufi saint Dada Hayat Mir Kalandar, which has been in the eye of a storm in recent years.

The Bababudan Dargah is also revered by Hindus as Dattatreya Peetha, the fusion of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva.

Secular grounds

The district was once known as a meeting place for people from the two faiths. However, public opinion in the district is now divided between the two ideologies.

A member of the Komu Souharda Vedike, or Forum for Communal Harmony, says that the people who reject naxalites as violence-prone have no hesitation in accepting the Sangh Parivar's doctrine.

In 2003, the Government ordered the arrest of leaders of the forum, including Jnanpith award winner Girish Karnad, when they tried to enter Chikmagalur through Hassan to conduct a "Sowharada Samavesha.''

A few members of the forum who assembled in Chikmagalur and conducted the samavesha were arrested.

During the Datta Jayanti celebration that year, all religious practices, some of which were not in vogue before 1975, were allowed in contravention of court orders.

Celebrations peaceful

This time, leaders and members of the Sangh Parivar were arrested for violating the ban on "Shobha Yatra." The order issued by the Commissioner of Religious Endowments on February 25, 1989, based on the practices in vogue at the hill shrine prior to 1975, was adhered to. The district administrative also ensured that the ban applied to observance of "urus."

The Datta Jayanthi celebration ended peacefully on Sunday with only a few devotees offering prayers at the Bababudan-Datta Peetha.

The Bajrang Dal has said that it will organise "Shobha Yatra" in two months.

Sources in the Sangh Parivar said there is a plan to install an idol of Dattatreya at Bababudangiri before the next Datta Jayanti.

If the plans are carried out, peace in the serene Malnad district will be under threat once again.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Karnataka