Fakira Dingaleshwar Swami of Shirahatti Fakkireshwar Mutt, who has openly declared that he would make an all-out effort to defeat Union Minister Pralhad Joshi, has claimed that he has the support of leaders from both Congress and BJP.
Speaking to presspersons in Hubballi on Friday, Dingaleshwar Swami said that prominent leaders of all the political parties had contacted him and that he would not disclose their names. “Leaders and people from across the State are calling me requesting me to contest against Mr. Joshi in the Lok Sabha election. When the system becomes fragile, it becomes necessary for the seers to enter the electoral fray,” he said.
He said that all these years, he was giving guidance and advice to the political leaders and now that the people wanted him to contest, he would announce his decision in Bengaluru soon after consulting various other religious heads and intellecturals.
He said that some of the seers had changed their stand or were issuing contradictory statements because of pressure from various sides. “Efforts to break my team were being made by the Union Minister Pralhad Joshi through different methods, but Mr. Joshi will not be able to break me,” he said.
On the possibility of Congress offering ticket, he said he would contemplate on the matter and not take any hasty decision.
He said that followers of Mr. Joshi were now questioning the need for seers to enter electoral politics, but the same was not the opinion of the majority. Already several religious heads from North India were into politics and were doing good service, he said.
Dingaleshwar Swami sought to know that if religious heads were not welcome in politics, why was it that the political leaders invited seers and pontiffs to their political programme. “Union Minister Joshi himself had taken 120 seers and monks from various mutts for the inauguration of party office in Kalaghatagi,” he said.
He also said that several seers had extended support to him along with leaders from BJP and Congress and to take forward their stand he had taken a firm decision to become their voice. On Lingayat leaders speaking against him, the seer said that under pressure from Mr. Joshi, a few had spoken against him. But he would like to ask them if for them, Mr. Joshi’s interests were more important than community’s interest.
