Lingayat Swami takes political plunge, announces contest against Pralhad Joshi

Local Lingayat mutt head Fakir Dingaleshwara Swami on Monday announced he would contest the Lok Sabha polls in Dharwad, ignoring appeals from the Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi's camp not to do so.

The Swami, who heads the Fakireshwara Mutt at Shirahatti, decided to enter the fray after the BJP did not pay heed to his demands to replace Joshi. The Swami has been on a warpath against Joshi for what he called "suppression" of the Lingayat community by the Dharwad MP.

Joshi, a Brahmin, is seeking election for a fifth successive term from Dharwad, with Lingayats throwing their weight behind him.


The swami has been vocal over the past few weeks that Lingayats must get political primacy in the region as they formed a majority in the region. Some local Congress leaders are also sniffing a political opportunity here as they plan to field the Swami from the Congress and make him a counterweight against the BJP.

Dharwad and Haveri are neighbouring constituencies, and both BJP and Congress have fielded Lingayat candidates in Haveri. In Dharwad, the Congress, however, has fielded a Kuruba candidate, which has not gone down well with sections of local Lingayat leaders.

They are trying hard with the party leadership to replace the official candidate with the Lingayat seer. While the Dingaleshwara Swami said he would fight as an independent, some local Congressmen are continuing with their efforts.

Meanwhile, Murugha Mutt, an influential religious mutt of Veerashaiva-Lingayats in Dharwad, has distanced itself from Dingaleshwara Swami's political moves as well as his comments on the local MP.

Joshi rode to political fame and helped the BJP cement its position in the region by leading a movement to hoist tricolour at the Idgah Maidan in Hubballi in the early 1990s. He has been winning with Lingayats throwing their weight behind him.