‘Induct Shrimant Patil or face our ire’

Shyam Sundar Vattam | NT

Karnataka Kshatriya Maha Okkuta has threatened to vote against the BJP in the coming elections in case Kagwad MLA Shrimant Patil is not inducted into the council of ministers in the coming Cabinet rejig.

The okkuta will launch ‘Bengaluru Chalo’ and camp at Freedom Park in the city till their demand to make Patil minister is met by the BJP high command. They are planning a Bengaluru Chalo on February 19 as part of Shivaji Maharaj Jayanthi, in which community leaders from all 31 districts will visit Bengaluru.

Okkuta President Shyam Sundar Gaekwad said the BJP high command must induct Shrimant Patil into the Council of Ministers as the Maratha community had not been given adequate representation in the Cabinet. In case their demand is not fulfilled, the community’s voters would vote against the BJP in the coming Zilla and Taluk Panchayats. They will also quit the BJP ahead of the 2023 Assembly polls, he said.

He also demanded that the government must appoint a suitable person as chairman and director for the Maratha Mandal as the posts have remained vacant for the last 15 months. The Maratha community must be shifted to the 2A category for quota from 3B and suitable representation must be ensured for the community in the taluk and zilla panchayat elections.

The BJP could win the Belagavi Lok Sabha seat by just 3,000 votes in the bypoll due to lack of support of the community. The same community has shown its strength by voting against the saffron party in the Council elections. It is high time CM Basavaraj Bommai sets right the injustice being meted out to the community all these years. Gaekwad said veteran BJP leader, B.S.Yediyurappa had promised to meet the community’s demands within 24 hours after the BJP came to power. But he did not fulfil the demand even after two years as CM. The incumbent CM too has not met the community’s demands in the last five months, he said.