After BJP, Congress and others stage protest over temple pond issue
Dalit leaders, backed by Jagadish Shettar, release documents to prove that the Pushkarani existed in the place where the road has come up
Days following a BJP-led protest to safeguard a temple pond (Pushkarani) in Hubballi, a counter-demonstration unfolded on Tuesday by Dalit and minority groups led by the Congress. The Congress accused the BJP of exploiting a development issue to fuel Hindu-Muslim division and trigger communal strife. Congress leaders, such as Rajat Ullagaddimath and Gurunath Ullikashi of Samata Sena, spearheaded the protest to protect the road built to aid residents near the Bhavani Shankar Temple.
Meanwhile, Dalit leaders, backed by BJP MP Jagadish Shettar, released historical records at a press conference to substantiate the existence of the Pushkarani at the current site of the road. Shettar presented excerpts from the Dharwar Gazetteer, claiming the reservoir and wells existed near Bhavani Shankar Temple. Dalit leader Vijay Guntral supported this claim, asserting that the municipal authorities had paved the road over the ancient pond.
Ullagaddimath questioned Shettar's awareness of the Pushkarani when he sanctioned development works in the same area while serving as a BJP councillor. Congress Deputy Leader of Opposition Arvind Bellad further criticized Bellad's constituency for covering up temple ponds to build roads, including near the Hanuman temple in the Fort area and the Bhavani Shankar Temple at Amargol.
Bellad threatened that Hindu youths would march to the RSS office in Hubballi if the BJP persisted in politicizing the issue and targeting minorities.
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