Express News Service
MYSURU: Amid speculation over a change of guard to replace Lingayat strongman and Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, trouble erupted from an unexpected quarter seers from various mutts across the state. This threatens to upset political calculations for the BJP if the party top bosses “betray” Yediyurappa and the dominant Lingayat community. The buzz is that the BJP high command is working out an amicable formula to replace Yediyurappa while ensuring a smooth transition.
The backing of the seers enjoyed by Yediyurappa portrays the power mutts wield in Karnataka politics. The seers have served an ultimatum to the party high command to retain Yediyurappa as CM or ensure that only a Lingayat is chosen as replacement. Sri Prasanna Renuka Veerasomeshwara Shivacharya Swamiji of Rambapuri Peetha said Yediyurappa is the unquestionable leader of the Lingayat community, which will be hurt if he is removed. Shivamurthy Sharanaru of Muruga Mutt said, “If he is disturb
Hesaraghatta grasslands. Pic: Mahesh Bhat
To a mind that’s taught to see vast swathes of land where no large trees but “mere” grass and shrubs grow as inconsequential, Hesaraghatta’s distinction as a unique habitat for flora and fauna may come as a rude shock. Here, the view is just grass, with a few trees to break the monotony, a dying river skirting the landscape, and a man made lake dependent on annual monsoons to validate its worth.
So, to truly appreciate the biodiversity hotspot that Hesaraghatta is, you have to either look up at the sky or peer hard into the ground.