BENGALURU: The Panchamsali Lingayat community members, who have been on the warpath for Category 2-A reservation, may be still smarting from the taunt that they were called ‘Congress-led protesters’ by the ruling dispensation, but they are in no mood to give up their fight.At an important meeting on Thursday evening, the leaders discussed the nitty-gritty of how to take the issue forward and what their response to the government’s reaction should be.
Speaking to TNIE, Vijayanand Kashappanavar, a leader associated with the movement, said, “There is no question of giving up the dharna. The Swamijis and the key office-bearers, including myself, will start our hunger strike as planned on March 4 if the state government does not heed our demand for reservation.’’ He said many from the Panchamasalis will join the hunger strike.
While those in the government have been urging restraint, telling the protesters that they should not go ahead with the hunger strike and instead, wait for the government to first finish the anthropological and geneological study in all the constituencies before taking a final decision, the protesters insist that the reservation issue should be sorted out soon as it has been hanging fire for 27 years.