Mysuru, 22 Sept

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday defended his government's decision to invite International Booker Prize winner and writer Banu Mushtaq to inaugurate Mysuru Dasara, and said majority people of the State have accepted it.

He said Dasara is not a festival of any one religion or caste, it is a festival of all. It is "Nada Habba" (State festival), the festival of the people.

The famous 11-day Dasara celebrations commenced in the ‘City of Palaces’ on Monday with religious and traditional fervour, after Mushtaq inaugurated it.

"Banu Mushtaq may be a Muslim woman by birth, but she is a human being first. Humans should love and respect each other and there should be no hate based on one's caste and religion, as it is not the characteristic of humanity," Siddaramaiah said.

Addressing the gathering after the inauguration of Mysuru Dasara, he said, "If we accept humanity, we should accept people belonging to any caste, religion or class --participating in the celebration of Nada Habba. Majority of the people of this State have accepted Banu Mushtaq inaugurating Dasara."

"Mushtaq inaugurating Dasara this year is a right decision and it is something that has brought respect for Karnataka. So I congratulate Mushtaq on behalf of the people and the government," he added.

Appreciating Mushtaq's inaugural address, Siddaramaiah said, even he cannot speak like her.

"She has spoken aptly and meaningfully in the given situation, being a poet, writer and the inaugurator. I hope everyone has understood her message. Probably she has opened the eyes of even those who opposed her, even those who opposed her are happy internally," he said, as he lauded her work being part of a farmer organisation, as an activist, Kannada writer and poet.

Noting that Dasara celebration was started by kings of the Vijayanagara empire and after its collapse, Mysuru kings under Raja Wadiyar I started celebrating it in 1610 started, the CM said, Hyder Ali and Tippu Sultan too celebrated Dasara during their rule over Mysuru in Srirangapatna.

He said, "People should know the history. By distorting history, doing things for the sake of selfishness and politics is an unpardonable offence. Whoever it is, no one should do politics in such matters. If you want to do politics, do it during the election. Unnecessarily, politics should not be done out of hate or to appease someone."

Yaduveer holds Royal Khas Durbar  

The Mysuru royal family, led by Yaduveer Wadiyar, started the 11 days private Dasara festival at the Mysuru Palace early Monday morning.  The highlight of the day was the Khas Durbar when Yaduveer symbolically held the durbar (court). 

This is the first Dasara festival for Yaduveer and Trishikha Devi Wadiyar’s second son Yugadhyaksh Krishnaraja Wadiyar. 

Royal family matriarch Pramoda Devi Wadiyar supervised the celebrations to ensure that they are conducted as per the tradition. Maharani Trisikha Kumari also performed various poojas and rituals before the Khas Darbar.