Bengaluru Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday reiterated that the state government would rename Mumbai-Karnataka region as ‘Kittur-Karnataka’, saying the former title holds no meaning since there were no ties between the two after the restructuring of states in 1956. Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai made the announcement during the Karnataka Rajyotsava, which is celebrated to commemorate the formation of Karnataka state 65 years ago.
Now It Will Be Kittur-Karnataka Says Bommai
In his speech Bommai said, “We have recently renamed Hyderabad-Karnataka region as Kalyana Karnataka. We have now decided to rename the Mumbai-Karnataka region as ‘Kittur Karnataka’ in the coming days,” the chief minister said, adding, “After the reorganisation, the border issue has been settled. Is there any meaning to Mumbai-Karnataka?” The announcement was made during the Karnataka Rajyotsava, which is celebrated to commemorate the formation of Karnataka state 65 years ago. The Mumbai-Karnataka region, which was formerly under the Bombay presidency, became part of Karnataka in 1956.
While Karnataka celebrates Kannada Rajyotsava on November 1, the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES), a group of native Marathi speakers, observe a black day as they claim to have been forcibly separated from their parent state 66 years ago during the reorganization exercise. The renaming has two benefits- one is to shrug off any ties to Mumbai and Maharashtra as well as naming the region after 19th century ruler, Kittur Rani Chennamma, the followers of whom are now the Panchamasalis, the largest subsect within the Lingayats. In 2012, the state government inaugurated the Suvarana Vidhana Soudha, a replica of the Vidhana Soudha in Bengaluru, where it holds the winter session of the state legislature, to further thwart any claims of territory from the neighbouring state.
MES President Deepak Dalvi Responds
This region still has native Marathi speaking residents, who continue to raise the inclusion of Belagavi and surrounding regions into Maharashtra and often clash with pro-Kannada organisations in the border district.
“Renaming the region does not change the topography of marathi culture or have any impact on our movement,” Deepak Dalavi, the president of the MES said. He added that Rani Chennamma is a revered figure and had written to the British, seeking permission for adoption in Marathi language.
Source : Hindustan Times
