Posted: Updated – 12:58 AM, Wednesday – November 2
Hyderabad: Karnataka’s BJP government faces fire over former chief minister BS Yediyurappa’s promise to set up a separate secretariat for the Karnataka region of Karnataka, the state’s Karnataka Rajyotsawa celebration on Tuesday Activities were also affected by protests calling for an independent state in the region.
In 2019, Yediyurappa, then Chief Minister, made this commitment after officially renaming the Hyderabad-Karnataka Region as the Kalyana Karnataka Region. A separate secretariat will ensure the development of the region.
Kalyana – Karnataka consists of Bidar, Kalaburagi, Yadgir, Raichur, Koppal, Bellary and Vijayanagara districts and is a backward district. People here have been demanding independent statehood on the grounds of backwardness and lack of growth and development.
Members of Kalyana Karnataka Prathyeka Rajya Horata Samithi protested in Karabraji city on Tuesday, saying the area continues to be neglected and successive state governments are discriminatory in ensuring development. According to reports, a group of people tried to raise a separate flag demanding a separate state for the Kalyana Karnataka region.
Sensing the trouble, the police detained about 15 members of Kalyana Karnataka Prathyeka Rajya Horata Samithi, including its president, MS Patil.
It will be recalled that in October last year, BJP MLA from Shivraj Patil, Raichur city constituency, sought to merge Raichur district with Telangana and was impressed with the welfare and development measures in all its sectors. The request was made in the presence of ministers and senior party leaders, and the plan discussed farmers in the region. This request received warm applause from the audience.
The need for independent statehood in the Kalyana-Karnataka region has also been a topic for a long time, citing the region’s economic and social backwardness.
After renaming the area, Yediyurappa has ensured that more funds are available in the state budget for the full development of the Kalyana-Karnataka area. However, people from the region claim that the BJP-ruled Karnataka government has failed to effectively enforce Section 371(J) – special status.
