DSS demands Yathindra’s public apology over remarks on Mysuru palace

Dalit Sangharsha Samithi State coordinator Ningaraj Malladi addressing a press conference in Mysuru on Thursday.

The Karnataka Dalit Sangharsha Samithi (DSS) has urged district in-charge Minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah to tender a public apology over his controversial remarks on the Mysuru palace.

Criticising the Minister for his recent statement that the Mysuru palace belonged to the government and that the erstwhile royal family had been generously allowed to reside there, Ningaraj Malladi, State coordinator of the DSS, said at the press conference here on Thursday that the Minister must exercise restraint when making public statements and must tender a public apology. The government must respect the erstwhile Mysuru royal family for its contribution to the development of the region.

Long before B.R. Ambedkar championed equality, reservation had been introduced in the erstwhile Mysuru State during the reign of Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar, giving a voice to the voiceless, Mr. Ningaraj said.

The DSS also criticised the lack of coordination among the district administration personnel, the Police Department and the Palace Board.

Meanwhile, Pailwan Krishna, city co-ordinator of DSS, Mysuru, alleged that the honorarium for 40 senior wrestlers, who served as judges for the Dasara wrestling competitions over the past two years, remained unpaid. The senior wrestlers had not received the honorarium of ₹2,000 that used to be paid to them earlier, he said.

He also alleged that the Dasara sub-committee had stopped felicitating the senior wrestlers and had failed to make even basic food arrangements for them. He further raised concerns over alleged irregularities in the selection of wrestlers for the Kesari Award.