Eye on Siddaramaiah's bastion, Modi to participate in Bengaluru prayer meet
, ET Bureau|
Updated: Oct 24, 2017, 11.01 AM IST
BENGALURU: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be participating in a mass prayer meet of a second-line Brahmin mutt in Bengaluru on October 29 even as the BJP in the election-bound state is solidifying its Hindu credentials.
With party national president Amit Shah laying down polarisation as a strong strategy point for the BJP in the run up to next year's polls, the state leadership has been working on consolidating their base voters, particularly in regions where they are weak. The event is being held by the Yedathore Yogananda Saraswathi Mutt, based in KR Nagar of Mysuru district, the home district of chief minister Siddaramaiah.
“So far, the BJP has not been able to make much of a difference in KR Nagar, though they have been trying to get a foothold from quite some time,“ a long-time devotee of the mutt told ET. “So far, this mutt is not very influential politically as the number of Brahmins in the region and surrounding areas is not substantial. But the mutt is slowly making a name by reaching out to other communities and involving them in their activities. It could be a factor for the PM deciding to attend their event.“
Sources in the BJP circle said that since the powerful pontiff of Sringeri does not make political statements or come out in support of parties, the smaller mutts in this stream of Hinduism which are affilated with them, like the Yedathore mutt, were being tapped.
The cause of the Yedatore mutt was reportedly argued by Union minister Anant kumar Hegde, who managed to get the PM to confirm his attendance for the event, where the mothers and fathers of a lakh of school and college stuite the Soundarya dents will recite the Soundarya Lahari composed by Adi Shankaracharya.
“We have been holding this event from 2007. For our inaugural event, we invited senior BJP leader K Advani along with state Congress leader RV Deshpande, both of whom attended it,“ event coordinator V Manjunath told ET.
With party national president Amit Shah laying down polarisation as a strong strategy point for the BJP in the run up to next year's polls, the state leadership has been working on consolidating their base voters, particularly in regions where they are weak. The event is being held by the Yedathore Yogananda Saraswathi Mutt, based in KR Nagar of Mysuru district, the home district of chief minister Siddaramaiah.
“So far, the BJP has not been able to make much of a difference in KR Nagar, though they have been trying to get a foothold from quite some time,“ a long-time devotee of the mutt told ET. “So far, this mutt is not very influential politically as the number of Brahmins in the region and surrounding areas is not substantial. But the mutt is slowly making a name by reaching out to other communities and involving them in their activities. It could be a factor for the PM deciding to attend their event.“
Sources in the BJP circle said that since the powerful pontiff of Sringeri does not make political statements or come out in support of parties, the smaller mutts in this stream of Hinduism which are affilated with them, like the Yedathore mutt, were being tapped.
The cause of the Yedatore mutt was reportedly argued by Union minister Anant kumar Hegde, who managed to get the PM to confirm his attendance for the event, where the mothers and fathers of a lakh of school and college stuite the Soundarya dents will recite the Soundarya Lahari composed by Adi Shankaracharya.
“We have been holding this event from 2007. For our inaugural event, we invited senior BJP leader K Advani along with state Congress leader RV Deshpande, both of whom attended it,“ event coordinator V Manjunath told ET.
