Bangalore:
The BJP faces an awkward situation as the decades-old border dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra, both now ruled by the party, is back in the spotlight.
As both state governments try to pander to regional sentiments, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj S Bommai have exchanged strong words on the sensitive political issue.
Mr Fadnavis said yesterday that no village in Maharashtra has recently pursued a merger with Karnataka, adding that there is no question of a border village “anywhere”. In a sharp reply, Mr Bommai called the Maharashtra BJP leader’s remark “provocative” and said “his dream will never come true”.
He added that Karnataka’s demand is that areas such as Maharashtra’s Solapur, which have a large number of Kannada speakers, should be part of Karnataka.
Earlier, Mr. Bommai had alleged that some village panchayats in Sangli district of Maharashtra had passed a resolution to pursue a merger with Karnataka in the past when faced with a water crisis. Karnataka government had planned plans to help them and his government was seriously considering their merger demand, he said.
Responding to questions about the Karnataka Chief Minister’s comments, Mr. Fadnavis said that these villages passed a resolution on the water crisis in 2012, but there have been no recent developments.
The BJP leader said that the previous Maharashtra government under him had reached an agreement with Karnataka to resolve the issue. A water supply plan was also drawn up for these villages, he said. “We are now going to approve that plan. Perhaps because of Covid, the previous (Uddhav Thackeray-led) government could not approve it,” Fadnavis added.
The BJP returned to power in June, along with a Shiv Sena faction led by Eknath Shinde — now Chief Minister — who rebelled against Thackeray’s leadership over his alliance with the Congress and Sharad Pawar’s NCP.
While Karnataka claims Kannada-speaking areas close to the state border, Maharashtra is pushing for a solution to the dispute over Belgaum district – also called Belagavi – and other Marathi majority areas in Karnataka.
The case reached the Supreme Court in 2004 when the then government of Maharashtra claimed the town of Belagavi and 865 villages. The case is pending.
Recently, a 19-member committee made up of leaders from all Maharashtra parties met and decided to request the Supreme Court to expedite the hearing. The government led by Eknath Shinde also formed a committee with two senior ministers to monitor the issue.
The chief minister of Karnataka has said that the state government has formed a formidable legal team to handle the border dispute when it comes to the Supreme Court.
Featured video of the day
Year-old dies due to measles in Mumbai, 10 deaths this year