Photo: Hemant Mishra/MintBengaluru: The Siddaramaiah-led Congress government on Saturday got a major boost in the run up to the assembly elections after many important Lingayat seers of influential Mathas (monasteries) in Karnataka openly endorsed the party. Mathe Mahadevi of the influential Basava Dharma Peetha in Kudalasangama said on Saturday that Siddaramaiah should be supported by the community. “This time, I don’t know about the others, but we should all support Siddaramaiah and his party,” she said in Bengaluru on Saturday amid slogans like “Bharata Desha, Jai Basavesha” and “Lingayata Vyakthi, Bharatakke Shakthi”. The seers hailed Siddaramaiah for not budging from his stand and granting the minority religion status despite the pressure mounted on him. The decision to grant minority status was aimed at splitting the BJP’s vote to help the Congress retain power in Karnataka, one of the last states still under the party’s rule.

Source: Mint April 07, 2018 13:41 UTC