Panchamasalis demand 5 Cabinet berths

The members of All India Panchamasali Lingayat Mahasabha, led by Congress legislator Vijayananda Kashappanavar, passed three resolutions on Tuesday, including a demand urging the ruling Congress party to accommodate at least five Panchamasali leaders in the Cabinet.

They also urged BJP to appoint a Panchamasali leader as either Leader of the Opposition or as chief of its state unit.

Kudalasangama Panchamasali Peeth seer Basava Jaya Mruthyunjaya Swami, who too was present in the meeting, told DH that the community strongly feels that those, who relentlessly stood by the community during more than a year-long agitation to seek reservation, must be accommodated by both parties. Hence, the Mahasabha passed these resolutions and handed them over to respective party headquarters and its top leaders, he added.

"The BJP must consider a leader from our community to one of its two powerful posts - Leader of the Opposition or as state unit president,” he said. However, he did not name any leader for these posts.

In its memorandum, the Mahasabha demanded that five Panchamasali MLAs, including Hungund MLA Vijayanand Kashappanavar, Hubli-Dharwad Rural MLA Vinay Kulkarni and Belgaum Rural MLA Lakshmi Hebbalkar must be accommodated as Cabinet ministers in the present government led by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

It also passed a resolution to felicitate all Panchamasali legislators in June.