Veerashaiva Lingayat sub-castes must unite: Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai

DHARWAD: Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has called upon all the sub-castes in the Veerashaiva Lingayat community to get united and work for the welfare of society and the state.
This will enable the establishment of a harmonious state, he said.
He noted this while speaking after inaugurating the 162nd jayanti of Tyagaveer Sirsangi Lingaraj Desai held at Magadum Kalyan Mantap in Dharwad on Tuesday.
To build a strong nation, the country should have a rich culture and tradition. The tradition of India is unique and such a tradition is not found elsewhere. The land here is holy because several eminent personalities have taken birth here and one among them is Lingaraj Desai, he said.
Recalling the freedom movement, Bommai said that the fight against colonial powers was not only to gain independence, but also to bring transformation in every field including education, social thinking, and spirituality. The root of this was the culture of the country.
Lingaraj was the first to conceptualise the formation of Akhila BharataVeerashaiva Mahasabha and this gave a vision for the development of the education sector in North Karnataka.
The mutts here played a significant role in imparting education and providing dasoha to poor students. These mutts never discriminated between caste and creed. Given Desai's foresight, educational institutes thrived here. Hence, Lingaraj is not a person but an institution, he said.
He added that Lingaraj Desai's ideologies should serve as a guide to present society.
The chief minister asked Congress leader and MLA MB Patil to head the Lingaraj Desai Trust to make it vibrant.
In order to make Karnataka a super-developed state, the state government will fully support the trust and people will have to step up, he said.
KPCC campaign committee chief and MLA MB Patil, handloom, textile minister Shankar Patil Munenkoppa, MLAs Arvind Bellad, Amrut Desai and others took part in the event.
Gadag Tontadarya mutt seer Siddaram swamiji and Malliakrjun swamiji of Murugha mutt graced the occasion.