This is from and on behalf of the organisers of "Conference for communal amity in Bababudan Giri" - a group of progressive organisations, human right groups,
University and college teachers, writers, intellectuals of Karnataka, aimed at protesting against the move of the Sangh parivar to create communal tension in
Chikmagalur District of Karnataka.
Chikmagalur town is the district head quarters, about 200 km from Bangalore. Chikmagalur is surrounded by a range of hills, which mark the beginning of Western
Ghats in Karnataka. Bababudan shrine is atop one such hill, and was established by a Sufi Saint named Dada Hiat Mir Kalandar, supposed to be a direct disciple of
the Prophet. But the darga is revered by Hindus equally, as the abode of Dattatreya, the configuration of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. The Dattatreya tradition has a
long history in Karnataka, a part of the Awadhut tradition that upholds a formless god and sternly condemns caste and the sacrificial religious system of the Brahmin
priests. There is also a long tradition here of the Dattatreya and Sufism going hand in hand as indicated by the fact that Dada Hayat and Dattatreya have become
interchangeable. There are innumerable local stories that sing the praise of both and express their admiration for Dada hayat and Dattatreya. Over the centuries,
various Muslim as well as Hindu rulers patronised the dargah, endowing it with wealth and land. Thus the Hindu or Muslim character of the dargah was never an issue. In fact the
very name of the shrine bears witness to this: Sri Dattatreya swami Baba Budhan Peetha. While Muslims saw Dada Hayat as a Muslim saint, some Hindus saw him as an
incarnation of their god Dattatreya. But there is no record till recently of this becoming a source of communal conflict.
It was only from 1980s, in the wake of the Hindutva agitation to demolish the Babri Masjid; the Karnataka unit of VHP launched a campaign for the 'liberation' of the
dargah of Dada Hayat. It set up a Datta Peetha Samrakshana Samiti and in 1989 it conducted a puja to Dattatreya outside the cave (in which Dada Hayat shrine is
located). Following the destruction of the Babri Masjid, the VHP got further emboldened and since then it is trying to conduct Dattatreya Jayanthi Utsav every year
in December. It even conducted a rath yatra by bringing thousands of innocent Hindus as well as bajrang dal members raising Hindu passions against Muslims in the
name of liberating the dargah from Muslim control. Pleas to ban the rath yatra were turned down by the non-BJP state government. The Bajrang Dal tore down the green
flags fluttering near the dargah and in their place hoisted saffron Hindutva flags. The police and the local administration remained mute spectators to this
vandalism. This year the VHP and other outfits of the Sangh Parivar came with an ingenious idea: to convene a Datta Male programme wherein the Hindus were told to wear saffron robes
and rosaries and march to the "Datta Peetha" as they do in case of the Sabari malai. It was a clear imitation of the Sabari Malai ritual. Thousands of Hindu youth,
including dalits and OBCs were involved in this programme. The district administration of the present day Congress Govt officially received the first batch of these
devotees. The protests went in vain. This is a clear case where in the Datta Peetha is being used to test the political waters in Karnataka and there are clear
indications that this place is becoming a testing ground for the BJP to bring a Gujarat like situation by whipping up religious passions for narrow political
gains. Chikmagalur and Baba Budan Hills are home to rich coffee plantations (it is said that the Coffee seeds were brought for the first time to this place by Baba
Hayat from Arabia). Because of steep fall in Coffee prices, there is a lot of distress and unemployment in this area and the Sangh parivar is using this crisis to its advantage.
Already two high level meetings, chaired by Union Minister Ananth Kumar, have been convened at Chikmagalur to address the coffee growers woes. Thus, politically,
socially and economically the situation in Chikmagalur has come handy for the Sangh Parivar people to exploit the situation for their advantage. They are planning to
hold 'Datta Jayanthi' on December 19 in a big way. Their demand is complete control (liberation) of the datta peetha. They have announced that if the government does
not hand over the shrine to them, they would resort to 'direct confrontation' leading to a 'blood bath' (Asian Age, Bangalore, 27 November, 1998). The government of
Karnataka over the years has become a silent witness to these activities by allowing it to take out the rath yatra and conduct puja in the shrine. At best, it has,
as usual, looked at this as a mere law and order problem.
However, several secular and left groups have been raising their voices of protest against the corruption of an ancient tradition, which was known for its communal
amity. These and related issues were discussed recently in Shimoga on November 24. The meeting was attended by the representatives of several progressive and secular
organisations and individuals. Another meeting was held again on December 8th to form the co-ordination committee of Bababudan Giri harmony convention. The meeting
decided to observe December 29 as Baba Budan Giri Harmony Convention and hold a massive public meeting of all the secular and anti-communal forces/organisations.
This is going to be a historical event and a powerful statement against the wicked moves of the Parivar to use Baba Budan Giri as its launching pad for its political
game. We invite all of you and your friends to participate in this Convention and join hands to prevent the Parivar from going about its activities.
The present Convention is a major attempt by a large group of various individuals and organisations to come together on a common platform to expose the fascist and
communal agenda of the Sangh parivar. The convention, besides Swami Agnivesh, will be attended by the pontiffs of two major communities in Karnataka: the lingayats
and vokkaligas. The revolutionary poet, Gaddar from Andhra will also be present.
The date chosen for the Convention is significant. It is the birthday of one of Kannada's greatest poets, KUVEMPU, who gave the clarion call for universal
brotherhood with his celebrated message of 'Universal Man'. His has been the sharpest voice against the priestly class and hence it is befitting that Dec. 29 is
observed as the day of Communal Harmony. Do come and participate.
Please disseminate this information among your friends and organisations.
Please convene meetings to discuss this issue in greater detail and lend your support for the Dec 29 meeting.
Participate in the convention in big numbers.
As the convention requires more than 3 lakh rupees and the resources for this convention will have to be mobilized from the public, we request you to contribute as
much as you can. Crossed Cheques and DDs can be addressed 'Bababudan Giri harmony convention co-ordination committee chikkamagalur'. You can send the same to the
addresses mentioned below*.
We are trying to mobilise all progressive and secular forces in the state. We had a meeting of the representatives of various dalit, women and youth organisations
on 8th of this month. Their presence would send the right signals to the people of our state. Please pass this information on to them and request them on our behalf
to consider our invitation positively.
For further information, please contact Ahobalapathy-KVR (Chief co-coordinator)
souhardagiri2002@rediffmail.com 0818-222770. Dr. Vasu at:
vasuhv@rediffmail.com Or Sreedhara, at 080-6507505 (
sreedhara@vsnl.net) or Dr Rajendra Chenni at: 08182-79370. ( rajchenni@hotmail.com) * Contact address: Ahobalapathy C/O K.L.Ashok-KVR behind veerabhadreswara theatre. Loordu nagar, Shimoga, Karnataka.
With thanks and regards,
Presidential committee.(provisional)
Prof.G.K.Govidaral, Dr.G.Ramakrishna, Prof.K.Ramdas, Devanooru Mahadeva, Prof. Hassan Mansoor, Kadidalu Shamanna, K.V.Subbanna, Kalkuli Vittal Hegde, Prof. B.V.Veerabhadrappa.
Working committee.(provisional)
Ahobalapathy-KVR.---Chief convenor.
Prof.Rajendra Chenni, Prof. K.Phaniraj, Prof. Rahamth Tareekere, Prof. J.Sadananada,Basavaraj Soolibavi, Vai.Ga. Jagadeesh, Nempe Devaraj, Hoovappa, Ramu Kouli, Hemakka, Siraj Ahmes, Sarja shankara Haraleematha, Abdul Wahab, K.L.Ashok, Dr, Vasu, K.P.Sreepaala, Rudraiah, K.M. Gopal, Rajaratnam, Parshuram Kalaal.K.Gireesh,Bhadravathi Manjunath, N.Manjula.
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