BENGALURU: Urging the state government to develop Kempegowda’s tomb as a tourist spot, Rajya Vokkaliga Sangha members started a Padayatra from Magadi to Kempapura on Monday.
The padayatra started early in the morning and culminated at Kote Maramma, which is at Kempapura near Kempegowda’s tomb.
Speaking to the media, Rajya Vokkaliga Sangha president Dr Appaji Gowda said, “The padayatra is being taken to Kempapura to urge the State Government to improve Kempegowda’s samadhi as a major tourist spot. Recently, an expert team from Kempegowda chair, Bangalore University, had confirmed that the tomb found near Magadi was the place where Bengaluru founder Hiriya Kempegowda had indeed died fighting a war. He called Kempegowda’s tomb the most precious historical find for Bengaluru. The Kannada inscription on the tomb says it is that of Hiriya Kempegowda (Kempegowda I) who died at the spot while returning from Kunigal.”
Addressing a huge gathering, Najavadhoota Swamji of Spatikapuri Math said, “The country is divided on a debate of tolerance and intolerance and if the State Government fails to take up the issue then it will be pushing a dominant community towards intolerance. We have statues of great leaders at Vidhana Soudha though ironically there is no statue of Bengaluru founder Kempegowda. It is high time his statue is installed. We also want the government to declare a holiday for Kempegowda Jayanti. The state government should immediately declare Kempegowda samadhi as a national memorial and take up improvement works.”