Senior leader of Bharatiya Janata Party, Basanagouda Patil Yatnal on Monday alleged that the Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa was using the Panchamasali Lingayat for his own political gain.
"Whenever he (Karnataka Chief Minister) gets a threat to his seat from high command, he uses Panchamasali Lingayat for political stability. Their agenda is to not give the opportunity to Panchamasali Lingayats," said the BJP leader.
Yatnal received a show-cause notice from BJP after his remarks against the current Chief Minister of the state. He attacked Yediyurappa and his son BY Vijayendra for using the Veerashaiva-Lingayat community issue in their favour to safeguard themselves.
Panchamasali is the largest sub-sect within the Lingayat community.
"His (Yediyurappa) son is also orgsing the whole campaign. Their agenda is not to give an opportunity to Panchamasali Lingayat. I told the same in the Tumkur meeting," Yatnal alleged.
Panchamashali Lingayat sect seers and leaders are demanding that their existing reservation category be changed from 3B to 2-A category in the State's Other Backward Community (OBC) list. They are undertaking a padayatra to Bengaluru and reached Tumkuru on Friday. The yatra is scheduled to culminate in a rally in Bengaluru on February 21.
The BJP MLA Yatnal has been targetting the Karnataka Chief Minister for several months and recently intensified after a recent cabinet expansion, in which he was not included.
( With inputs from ANI )
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