<p>As Karnataka observes the birth centenary of Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar — the 25th Maharaja of the erstwhile Mysore Kingdom and the first Governor of the Mysore State, a statue on the busy Race Course Road Junction has kicked up controversy.</p>.<p>Pro-Kannada organisations have expressed objection to the ‘incorrect’ portrayal of Wadiyar.</p>.<p>Coinciding with the centenary celebrations of Wadiyar a few months ago, the Kannada Maneya Kavalugarara Pade, located at the Swiss Complex on the Race Course Road in High Grounds limits, had installed the statue of Wadiyar at the busy junction in front of the Bangalore Turf Club.</p>.<p>However, the depiction of Wadiyar in the statue has not gone down well with the several pro-Kannada and cultural outfits. The organisations criticised the statue citing it does not bear any resemblance to Wadiyar himself.</p>.<p>Registering their dissent, Bengaluru-based Kannada Katte, an association for Kannada culture, appealed to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to replace it with a bronze statue of Wadiyar, similar to his portrait at the Mysore Palace.</p>.<p>“The volunteers of the association have done good work by installing the statue of Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar. But the statue does not resemble Wadiyar. It could be due to the cement work as it is difficult to achieve the original shape in cement. As we are celebrating the birth centenary, the BBMP shall install a bronze statue in the same place, drawing on the Wadiyar portrait in Mysore,” Kannada Katte president Mavalli Aravinda told <span class="italic">DH</span>.</p>.<p>When <span class="italic">DH</span> got in touch with Vasanth Nagar ward corporator Sampath Kumar, he said he wasn’t aware of the Wadiyar statue in question.</p>.<p>“I am unaware of this statue. Probably it may have been unveiled unofficially. There was no permission from the BBMP,” he said.</p>.<p>Moreover, BBMP joint commissioner (East) G M Ravindra revealed he too was not aware of the statue in question.</p>.<p><span class="italic">DH</span> tried in vain to reach out to Kannada Maneya Kavalugarara Pade office-bearers for further clarification onm the issue.</p>
<p>As Karnataka observes the birth centenary of Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar — the 25th Maharaja of the erstwhile Mysore Kingdom and the first Governor of the Mysore State, a statue on the busy Race Course Road Junction has kicked up controversy.</p>.<p>Pro-Kannada organisations have expressed objection to the ‘incorrect’ portrayal of Wadiyar.</p>.<p>Coinciding with the centenary celebrations of Wadiyar a few months ago, the Kannada Maneya Kavalugarara Pade, located at the Swiss Complex on the Race Course Road in High Grounds limits, had installed the statue of Wadiyar at the busy junction in front of the Bangalore Turf Club.</p>.<p>However, the depiction of Wadiyar in the statue has not gone down well with the several pro-Kannada and cultural outfits. The organisations criticised the statue citing it does not bear any resemblance to Wadiyar himself.</p>.<p>Registering their dissent, Bengaluru-based Kannada Katte, an association for Kannada culture, appealed to the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to replace it with a bronze statue of Wadiyar, similar to his portrait at the Mysore Palace.</p>.<p>“The volunteers of the association have done good work by installing the statue of Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar. But the statue does not resemble Wadiyar. It could be due to the cement work as it is difficult to achieve the original shape in cement. As we are celebrating the birth centenary, the BBMP shall install a bronze statue in the same place, drawing on the Wadiyar portrait in Mysore,” Kannada Katte president Mavalli Aravinda told <span class="italic">DH</span>.</p>.<p>When <span class="italic">DH</span> got in touch with Vasanth Nagar ward corporator Sampath Kumar, he said he wasn’t aware of the Wadiyar statue in question.</p>.<p>“I am unaware of this statue. Probably it may have been unveiled unofficially. There was no permission from the BBMP,” he said.</p>.<p>Moreover, BBMP joint commissioner (East) G M Ravindra revealed he too was not aware of the statue in question.</p>.<p><span class="italic">DH</span> tried in vain to reach out to Kannada Maneya Kavalugarara Pade office-bearers for further clarification onm the issue.</p>