Karnataka : Bengaluru : 10/08/20017 : A view of Lingayata Dharma Samalochana Sabha meeting of Lingayat religious leaders and community leaders to discuss on seperate religion status, at Jyanana Jyothi Auditorium on 10 August 2017. Photo : V Sreenivasa Murthy

Over 30 heads of Lingayat mutts met here on Thursday and passed a five-point resolution to press ahead with the demand for minority religion status for the community on the lines of Buddhism, Sikhism and Jainism.

Later in the day, the seers also presented a joint memorandum to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, demanding that the State government forward it to the Union government. They insisted that the nomenclature should be ‘Lingayat’ and not ‘Lingayat/Veerashaiva’ as demanded by the Akhila Bharata Veerashaiva Mahasabha.

The programme, held under the aegis of the newly formed Lingayat Mahasabha, was also attended by political party leaders (predominantly from the Congress), scholars and former bureaucrats. The Lingayat Mahasabha, according to its co-ordinator and former bureaucrat Shivanand Jamdar, is “an unofficial and apolitical umbrella organisation of religious heads, intellectuals, and leaders of all political parties belonging to the community”.

The State-level convention of the Lingayat Mahasabha, after five hours of deliberations, decided to adopt a resolution recognising 12th century philosopher and social reformer Basaveshwara as the founder of Lingayat Dharma, and vachanas as the religious texts of the religion. These should not be used in the name of ‘Veerashaiva’, they argued.

It was also resolved to urge the Akhila Bharata Veerashaiva Mahasabha to implement the decision taken seven decades ago in Davangere to change its name as Akhila Bharata Lingayat Mahasabha.

The convention directed heads of Virakta mutts (who consider Basaveshwara as the founder of Lingayat Dharma) to propagate Basaveshwara’s philosophy on a war footing. “The seers who do not do so will have to renounce the peetha (post),” said Mr. Jamdar. He argued that according to five Census exercises from 1881 to 1931, Veerashaiva was a sub-sect of Lingayat community. “Ninety-nine sects have embraced Lingayat religion and the question of sub-caste does not arise,” he said.

Tontadarya Swami of Gadag asserted that those who could not attend the meeting had assured them of acknowledging the resolutions passed. Similar was the response to the query on the absence of some of top political leaders belonging to the community.

“We are confident of convincing those who have reservation with the resolutions,” said Mr. Jamdar, and added that seers of the Veerashaiva Pancha Peetha would also be convinced.

Some prominent seers, including those of Suttur Mutt and Siddaganga Mutt, however, were not present at the meeting.

Five resolutions

Declare Lingayat Dharma as an independent religion

Recognise Basaveshwara as the founder of Lingayat Dharma and vachanas as Lingayat religious texts

Seers of Virakta Mutts should propagate Basaveshwara’s principles, or else step down from their position

Lingayat religion, its philosophy and vachanas should not be used under the nomenclature of ‘Veerashaiva’

In keeping with the 1941 resolution of the Akhila Bharata Veerashaiva Mahasabha, it should be renamed Akhila Bharata Lingayat Mahasabha

Prominent leaders present

Ministers such as M.B. Patil, Vinay Kulkarni, Basavaraj Rayaraddi and Sharanprakash R. Patil; JD(S) leader and MLC Basavaraj Horatti; Member of Parliament Prakash Hukkeri; MLAs Ashok Pattan, D.G. Shantana Gowda, and Raju Aleguru; MLC Kondajji Mohan; and BJP leader and women’s activist Prameela Nesargi

Those absent

Ministers H.K. Patil, Eshwar Khandre and S.S. Mallikarjun