Bengaluru’s Veer Savarkar flyover: Inauguration postponed, opposition continues to hit out at Karnataka govt
The decision to name the flyover after Veer Savarkar in Bengaluru has created a controversy as the opposition stated that it is an insult to freedom fighters of Karnataka
FollowBengaluru: The Congress and JD(S) in Karnataka have opposed the move to name a flyover in the city after freedom fighter and Hindutva ideology Veer Savarkar, and termed it as an insult to freedom fighters of the state.
The inauguration of 400 metre long flyover, which according to sources has been constructed at a cost of Rs 34 core, was scheduled for today in Bengaluru’s Yelahanka, but has now been postponed due to fears of social distancing violations. It was to be inaugurated by chief minister BS Yediyurappa today, which happens to be Veer Savarkar's birth anniversary.
Leader of opposition and former chief minister Siddaramaiah termed the move to name the flyover after Veer Savarkar an insult to freedom fighters from Karnataka's soil and urged Yediyurappa to drop it and instead name it after a freedom fighter from the state.
In a tweet, he said, "The decision of the state government to name the Yelahanka flyover after VD Savarkar is a humiliation to the Karnataka’s freedom fighters. I urge @CMofKarnataka to immediately withdraw this order and name the flyover after any one of the state’s freedom fighters."
Yelahanka MLA SR Vishwanth when speaking to Asianet Newsable said that the decision to name the flyover at Yelahanka after Veer Savarkar was taken at the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) council meeting on February 29.
Defending the move, Yelahanka MLA SR Vishwanath, who is also the political secretary to chief minister, said, there was nothing wrong in naming the flyover after a freedom fighter and legally as per rules BBMP council has approved it and all formalities have been completed and only after that the naming has been planned.
The Congress said naming of the bridge after Veer Savarkar was taken, despite opposition, and questioned Savarkar's contribution to Karnataka and Bengaluru.
The Congress and other opposition parties had earlier opposed the move to confer Bharat Ratna on Veer Savarkar, posthumously.
As the matter escalated, opposition in BBMP staged a protest objecting the naming of Yelahanka flyover after Veer Savarkar. They shouted slogans against the government and condemned BBMP's decision. They demanded that the flyover be named after Nissar Ahmed, a leading Kannada writer who passed away recently.
Meanwhile, the BJP lashed out at Congress for creating a controversy and dragging Savarkar's name into it.
Initially, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president DK Shivakumar said he would not like to comment when LoP Siddaramaiah has already taken a stand, but said BJP is sparking off a controversy for no reason.
However, JD(S) stuck to its stand wherein HD Kumaraswamy stated that Karnataka leaders should be given prominence rather than other state leaders. State president of the party HK Kumaraswamy echoed the same thought.
