Lingayat mutts way to victory in Karnataka

Beyond door-to-door contact, road shows and corner meetings, a more important form of canvassing is taking place in the Shaivite Lingayat-dominated belt of north Karnataka.

Lingayat mutts or temple trusts (powerful religious endowments with a wide network of disciples and hence, captive vote banks) are being wooed by both the Congress and the BJP.

The strength of the BJP in Karnataka is believed to be based on the support of the Lingayat community, a hefty 17% vote. It helps, of course, that chief minister BS Yeddyurappa is a devout Lingayat. The Congress, however, has decided to break this monopoly.

DNA visited the Moorsawira mutt in Hubli headed by Swami Niranjan Maharaj. A massive complex, the mutt has a clock that towers over Hubli. The mutt is known to have enormous wealth and uses it to run schools, hospitals and other charities in the name of Basaveshwara, the 12th century seer who founded the Lingayat sect.

A labyrinthine narrow staircase leads us to Swamiji, as he is referred to by disciples. Dressed in saffron, with a matching turban, Swamiji is fairly youthful and quite open to discussing politics. “Yes, we do have a lot of influence, but we are careful to keep ourselves neutral,” he says. “Disciples from all parties come here to seek my blessings. I bless them all, but I will confess I am partial to one. That, of course, is between me and the secret ballot,” he laughs.

Congressmen, however, say the ballot of the Lingayat mutts has not been secret for a long time. They have been consistently supporting the BJP. This time round, Manjunath Kannur, the Congress candidate from Hubli-Dharwad constituency, is a Panchamshali Lingayat, a dominant community here. He is determined to break the monopoly. What helps him is that Prahlad Joshi, the BJP candidate, is a Brahmin.  

Mysterious SMS campaigns have been launched for the Lingayat vote. “Sriguru Basavlingayah namah, Lingayats should unite and make sure a Lingayat wins”, reads one SMS.