Overview

• Former BJP MP Pratap Simha filed a petition in the Karnataka High Court seeking a stay on the state’s move to have International Booker winner Banu Mushtaq inaugurate Mysuru Dussehra.
• The petition argues the inauguration involves Vedic recitals and rituals at the Chamundeshwari idol, alleges Mushtaq is anti-Hindu, and notes opposition from the Mysuru royal family.
• Hindu Jagarana Vedike announced a ‘Mysuru Chalo’ agitation on September 9, planning a rally from Kurubarahalli to Chamundi Hills to press for withdrawing the invitation.
• Chief Minister Siddaramaiah called the opposition politically motivated, said there is no evidence Mushtaq insulted ‘Kannadambe’, and cited past non-Hindu inaugurations without controversy.
• The government maintains Dussehra’s public inauguration is a cultural celebration of the land and has stood by inviting Mushtaq for the September 22 opening.