Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Feb 5: Leaders from various regions of the state, who have been insistent that united Veerashaiva - Lingayat religion should not be bifurcated as demanded by Lingayat leaders, met the experts panel of Karnataka State Minorities Commission and urged it not to consider the demand for dividing the community.

At the meeting of the experts panel, the leaders submitted certain evidences and documents in support of their claim that Veerashaiva and Lingayat are one and the same religion. They also sought six more months time for submission of additional documents.

The leaders said that bifurcation of Veerashaiva - Lingayat religion is being undertaken at the behest of the state government. They argued that the experts panel of Karnataka State Minorities Commission is illegal, noting that the committee does not have representatives from Veerashiva Lingayat sect. "Election is round the corner. There is no need for setting up a committee to consider division of the religion at this juncture. Therefore, the panel should be dissolved," they argued.
The leaders said that Veerashaiva religion has been in existence since the period preceding the era of Basavanna and that it has a history of 5,000 years. "The observations of Veerashivas reflect the culture and heritage of the people," they said and handed over detailed explanations about 'Ashtavarana Panchaacharya' and Shat Sthalas. They also expressed the opinion that talk of separate religion is nothing but an election stunt.

Aiswamy Gowda from Hassan, Prabhudeva Kalmatha and B C Nataraj from the city, advocates, Vishwanath Hiremath and R R Hiremath, Veerabhadrappa Varadani from Kalaburagi, Sri Sidramappa Algudkar, Prasad Sirimane from Chikkamagaluru, Veeresh Hiremath Parishtrama Varte and Prashant R T from Davanagere were among those who took part in the deliberations.