Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Jun 20: The union government, which has said that the proposal submitted by the state government to accord the status of separate religion to Lingayat is still under scrutiny, also provided to the high court a copy of the order dated November 14, 2013, passed by the then UPA government at the centre, shooting down the recommendation to give religious status to Veerashaiva-Lingayat religion. It pointed out that the UPA government had opined then that Veerashaiva - Lingayat is a part of Hindu religion, and that if this religion is given the status of minority religion, dalits within this religion will be deprived of reservation facility for which they are presently eligible.

The central government made this submission before the division bench of the state high court presided by Chief Justice, Dinesh Maheshwari, and Justice Krishna Deekshit, which is examining a public interest litigation filed by Shashidhar Shanbhogue and others. The petitioners have demanded for the dismantling of the committee formed by the state government to consider giving the status of minority status to Lingayat religion. As the union government sought time, the hearing was adjourned to August 29.

Additional solicitor general of the central government, Prabhulinga Navadagi, placing arguments on behalf of the centre, said that the proposal submitted by the state on March 23 about granting minority religious status fo the centre is still under consideration. He said that in spite of the 2013 order of the then government at the centre, information is being collected from various department to scrutinize the proposal sent by the state afresh.

Advocate for the petitioners, G R Gurumath, argued that when the earlier proposal was rejected, Akhil Bharat Veerashaiva Mahasabha had been informed about it, and that the copy of this decision had been included in the counter objections submitted by the state government on March 28, 2018. He felt that the copy of the 2013 order now presented by the centre should be considered as authorized document as the centre cannot own any other stand. The Chief Justice then remarked that the centre has just mentioned about the 2013 order and that it has not relied on it.

In an ammended petition submitted in this case, advocate, N P Amritesh, has requested the high court to direct the centre not to accept the recommendation made by the state government to grant minority religion status to Lingayat religion.

In the meanwhile, addressing a press conference here, Siddarama Mahaswamiji of Rudrakshi Math, Naganur, said that agitation seeking separate religion status for Lingayat would be intensified to bring pressure on the central government in the coming days.