DK Shivakumar apologises over Lingayat issue on behalf of previous Congress govt

BENGALURU: Karnataka's water resources minister and senior Congress leader DK Shivakumar on Thursday dropped a bombshell by apologising with folded hands on behalf of the previous Siddaramaiah-led Congress government for supporting the Lingayats' demand for a separate religious identity. +

Shivakumar had expressed his apologies on the sensitive issue at the Rambhapuri Peetha in Laxmeshwar in Gadag district, 390km from Bengaluru, on Wednesday.

Elaborating on his statements to the media in Bengaluru on Thursday, Shivakumar said no government should interfere in the religion, caste or culture-related issues.

"The Congress government, of which I was also a part, made the mistake and we also saw the consequences of it in the 2018 assembly polls. The issue was rankling in my mind as it was against my conscience. I found an appropriate time and opportunity to express my feelings," he added.

All the Lingayat ministers who had rallied for seeking a separate identity for the community lost in the May assembly polls.

Shivakumar said the then Congress government should not have buckled under pressure to the Lingayat lobby, when a petition was given.

"The government constituted a panel, recommended a religous minority tag to the Lingayats, which was rejected by the Centre. Getting involved in caste and religion issues is not the work of any government," he maintained.

Shivakumar seeking an apology on behalf of the Siddaramaiah government, is being seen as a political strategy by him amidst the five bypolls which Karnataka will face on November 3. He is the in charge of Bellary Lok Sabha bypoll, a reserved constituency for the Scheduled Tribes, but where the Lingayat votes matter for the candidate's victory.

However, the minister's statement has been slammed by his former Lingayat colleagues in the cabinet Vinay Kulkarni and MB Patil, who were in the forefront of seeking a separate tag for the community. Patil has questioned Shivakumar on how many Lingayat ministers he could get elected in the 2018 assembly polls.

Declining to join issues with the former Lingayat ministers, Shivakumar said: "I don't have the political capacity to get any person elected. I am neither a national nor a state leader. Yes, I could have put pressure at the time and voiced my dissent, did not do so."