HUBBALLI: Ahead of the elections to the Karnataka assembly in 2018, the movement demanding the recognition of the Lingayat sect as a separate religion gained momentum, leaving opinion across the political spectrum considerably polarised.
However, four years since the agitation petered out, the issue has not returned to the limelight in the state. Furthermore, with chairman of the Karnataka legislative council Basavaraj Horatti, who was one of the leading figures in the movement, set to join the BJP soon, the agitation is expected to be thrust further into the margins of the political landscape.
However, there are those associated with the agitation who are hoping that Horatti will continue to be associated with the movement, regardless of political allegiance.
That Horatti was elected the first president of the Jagathika Lingayat Mahasabha, a body constituted in January 2018 in opposition to the All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha, is indicative of the prominent role the former minister had in the movement. Along with senior Congress leaders and former ministers MB Patil, Sharan Prakash Patil and Vinay Kulkarni, Horatti had led the fight seeking recognition of Lingayats as a separate religion in the political sphere.
Those at the forefront of the movement attributed its failure to the decision of seeking identification as a separate religion for the ‘Veerashaiva-Lingayat’ sect. In the aftermath of the campaign, the faultlines between the mutts of the Lingayat and Veerashaiva communities sharpened markedly. Those leading the movement now are demanding the status of a separate religion exclusively for the ‘Lingayat’ sect. Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president DK Shivakumar had, at an event in Lakshmeshwar few years ago, cited the Congress’s backing for the agitation for the party’s poor performance in the 2018 assembly elections.
Basava Jaya Mrtyunjaya Mahaswamiji of the Lingayat Panchamasali Peetha in Kudalsangama said that the campaign was independent of political affiliation. “We are neither against nor for any particular party. Political leaders who joined our movement did so as Lingayats. Horatti joining the BJP was his personal decision, but he will continue to be associated with the movement. Moreover, the proposal is still pending before the Centre,” he told TOI.
Member of the Jagatika Lingayat Mahasabha’s executive committee Lokesh Koravi too dismissed concerns over Horatti abandoning the agitation. “We have hopes of Horatti convincing the BJP to accord Lingayat the separate religion tag,” Koravi said.
President of Akhila Bharat Lingayat Panchamasali Samaj All India Youth Forum Rajashekar Menasinakai, himself a Congress leader, said, “Horatti is among the senior-most Lingayat leaders from North Karnataka, and he has a cordial relation with all communities. We believe he will continue to fight with us for the recognition of Lingayat as a separate religion.”
However, not everyone associated with the agitation is as optimistic about Horatti’s continued participation. Pointing to the BJP’s antagonistic stance towards those engaged in the movement, they felt that Horatti was likely to keep a safe distance. On the other hand, Horatti was not available for comment.
