Karnataka planning to ban Maratha convention in Belgaum

The Karnataka Government is seriously considering a proposal to ban the Maratha rally convened by Maharashtra Ekikaran Samithi (MES) in Belgaum on September 25 to prevent a confrontation between pro-Maratha and pro-Kannada groups in the border district.

With MES planning to bring more than 25,000 people from Maharashtra including Shiv Sena leaders like Uddhav Thackeray for the convention, which co-incides with the legislature session of Karnataka Government in Belgaum, the threat of a showdown between Kannidagas and Marathas looms large over the disputed border district.

Speaking to reporters at Mysore near here, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy said the Karnataka Government would take an appropriate decision within the legal framework to clamp a ban on the parallel Maratha rally. “Though a majority of people in Belgaum stood by Karnataka, a few people are indulging in activities, which are against the interest of the state. We will deal with it at an appropriate time within the legal framework”, Kumaraswamy said.

But, the Karnataka Chief Minister said the possibility of the MES rally’s success were bleak. The Karnataka Government would like to win the hearts of discontented leaders in Belgaum. “The joint session of Karnataka Legislature, scheduled to be held from September 25 to 28 at Belgaum, is an effort in that direction”, the Chief Minister said.

Meanwhile, the MES, which has invited Shiv Sena leaders from Maharashtra to participate in the rally, has asked its activists to hoist its saffron flag atop all houses in Maratha-dominated localities of Belgaum.

The party activists have been holding meetings in Maratha-dominated villages in the border district and mobilizing people to attend the rally and a send a strong signal to the Karnataka Government on their demand for transfer of Maratha-speaking areas in Belgaum to Maharashtra.

MES lawmakers in Karnataka Manohar Kinekar and Digambar Patil have already announced their boycott of the Karnataka Legislature session.