Aaditya Thackeray demanding UT status to Belagavi is 'childish': CM Siddaramaiah

Belagavi: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday termed Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray’s demand that Belagavi, bordering Maharashtra be declared a Union Territory as “childish”.

Speaking to reporters here, he said, “It’s a childish statement. The Mahajan report is final. So, neither should we ask for anything and nor should they. How can it be declared as union territory? And, if Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES) protests, will we keep quiet?” Thackeray on Monday alleged that injustice was being meted out to Marathi-speaking people in Belagavi, demanding that the region be declared a Union Territory.

Talking to reporters in Mumbai, he said while celebrations are underway over the formation of the new government in Maharashtra, the situation was deteriorating in Belagavi in the neighbouring state.

As the winter session of the Karnataka assembly began on Monday, members of the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti were opposing it. The outfit organised a congregation in Belagavi, but the Karnataka government reportedly prohibited the gathering and banned leaders from Maharashtra from entering the state.

The border issue dates back to 1957 when states were reorganised on linguistic lines. Maharashtra laid claim to Belagavi, which was part of the erstwhile Bombay Presidency, as it has a sizeable Marathi-speaking population, and over 800 Marathi-speaking border villages that are currently a part of Karnataka.

Karnataka maintains that the demarcation done on linguistic lines as per the States Reorganisation Act and the 1967 Mahajan Commission Report is final.

To assert that Belagavi is an integral part of the state, Karnataka built the ‘Suvarna Vidhana Soudha’ here, modelled on the Vidhana Soudha, the seat of the State Legislature and Secretariat in Bengaluru.