Mysuru, 25 October

Mysuru Royal Family Matriarch Pramoda Devi Wadiyar on Sunday slammed the State government for the alleged protocol violations during the recently concluded Mysuru Dasara celebrations, saying she was “disappointed”.

In a press release, she stated that non-cooperation and lack of coordination between the Government Departments have caused great inconvenience to the Royal Family and interferes with religious rituals.

“It is regrettable to note that lack of effective coordination and communication among the Palace Police,” she stated, noting that the State government had deployed personnel from other districts for the event. She said that the lack of communication led to the cancellation of the Vajramushti Kalaga, a traditional wrestling bout that is held annually during the Royal Family’s private Dasara celebrations. 

She also said that the private parking for the family was encroached upon by police personnel. 

 She urged the government to free the palace premises completely for Ayudha Puja and Vijayadashami for the family to conduct Ayudha Puja and Vijayadashami as per Royal family convenience without any external interference.

"The High Court of Karnataka has categorically stated that we are at liberty to approach (it) if there is any obstruction in respect of the performance of the poojas and other customary rituals. However, I have refrained from doing so year after year,” Pramoda stated. But, “for the first time in the last 45 years, we were kept in the dark as regards the elephant which was going to carry the Ambari. We were not informed of that information till the last minute and I had to take it up with the DCF five days before the event to know which elephant was designated to carry the Ambari. This also created an enormous amount of stress for no reason, she said. 

Pramoda urged the government to consider shifting the time of the Jambo Savari.