Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Aug 12: The Veerashaiva-Lingayat divide on the issue of religion tag appears to be widening. A number of leading personalities belonging to Veerashaiva community, who met under the banner of Akhila Bharata Veerashaiva Mahasabha on Friday August 11, reportedly disagreed with the suggestion to support a resolution passed at a meeting of some religious leaders and legislators including ministers demanding Lingayats to be identified as separate religion.

A meeting of religious leaders and Lingayat leaders who met on Thursday under the leadership of state minster for water resources, M B Patil, had adopted several resolutions. One of them was demand for identifying Lingayats, currently being considered as Hindus, as belonging to a separate religion.

Meeting of Lingayat religious leaders

It is learnt that president of Akhila Bharata Veerashaiva Mahasabha, Shamanur Shivashankarappa, had, soon after the passage of above resolution, had contacted some leaders of the Mahasabha with the suggestion that the organization should issue statement to assert a decision taken by the leaders in the past. It is said that many asked him to remain mum as they feared that they would be stoking a controversy as they could be accused of being opposed to Lingayats. Thereafter, religious heads of five Maths of the group reportedly met at a secret venue.

Shivashankarappa said that minister, M B Patil, was wrong in claiming to have contacted the former. He stated that he was not invited to the meeting convened by Patil as claimed by the latter.

The Lingayat community has been demanding religious status for their faction alone, without involving Veerashaivas, who some allege, follow caste system. The Lingayats have also been demanding for a separate Mahasabha for their community.