BENGALURU: Senior Congress leader and president of All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha Shamanuru Shivashankarappa is being wooed by both Congress and BJP ahead of the crucial Mahasabha meeting that could prove decisive for their electoral fortunes.The meeting to be held in Bengaluru on Friday is expected to decide the Mahasabha’s stand on Siddaramaiah government’s decision to accord minority religion status to Lingayat community.
As speculations of BJP trying to net Shivasankarappa into its fold are doing the rounds, he denied the reports of any change in his political loyalties. Shivashankarappa had opposed the Cabinet decision and termed it as a move to divide the Veerahsaiva-Lingayat community.It is not just Shivashankarappa. Even seers of some of the mutts who are opposing the Cabinet decision are being wooed to change their stand. According to sources, efforts are on by some Lingayat ministers in the Siddaramaiah Cabinet to convince Pancha Peetha seers, who have been opposing the Cabinet decision, to change their stand.
The Congress leadership is said to be trying to impress upon Shivashankarappa not to take any decision that would affect the electoral prospects of the party.Shivashankarappa, however, has refused to comment.
Shivashankarappa is said to have met BJP state president and Lingayat strongman B S Yeddyurappa at the latter’s residence in Bengaluru on Wednesday and the two leaders discussed the issue at length.
Shivashankarappa’s moves have triggered speculations of the Congress leader joining BJP. BJP national president Amit Shah is said to have shown keen interest to get Shivashankarappa into BJP fold.Trying to scotch the speculations, Shivashankarappa ruled out any such possibility. “My son, minister S S Mallikarjun, and I are in the Congress and the reports of joining BJP are baseless,”he said.
BJP TO TAKE IT TO PEOPLE’S COURT
BJP, which has been waiting for the outcome of the Mahasabha meeting to finalise its stand on the issue, is now playing the ‘Veerashaiva-Lingayat unity’ card. “The divide-and-rule strategy will burn Siddaramaiah’s house,” BJP National General Secretary in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka Muralidhar Rao said. “Congress and Siddaramaiah have cheated the entire community for power. The entire episode is an election gimmick. BJP will take this issue to people’s court,” Rao added.
