Members of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Hindu Jagran Vedike staged a protest against the proposal for the construction of 114 feet Jesus Christ statue in Kanakapura district of Karnataka.
Karnataka: Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Vishva Hindu Parishad, & Hindu Jagaran Vedike protest against the construction of 114-ft tall Jesus Christ statue in Kanakapura. https://t.co/aND6y8wERt pic.twitter.com/WbTZXa5nKb
— ANI (@ANI) January 13, 2020
Hundreds of protestors had gathered at Kanakapura to protest against the project. The state government had deployed over 1000 policemen to maintain law and order in the area.
The project encompasses the building of the world’s largest Jesus Christ statue at DK Shivakumar’s bastion- Kapalibetta in Kanakapura.
Responding to the protests, Shivakumar said that it was not him but the Christian residents of the village who decided to get a Jesus Christ’s statue and being an MLA he simply helped them.
The statue is set to come up at Harobele, a village dominated by Christians in Shivakumar’s constituency. On Christmas, Shivakumar handed over the documents to the trust tasked with the responsibility of building the statue.
BJP leaders have not only questioned the legality of the land allocation, but also the motive behind the statue, alleging there are attempts of forced conversions in the area.
However, the issue of senior Congress leader DK Shivakumar ‘sponsoring’ the construction of a 114-foot statue of Jesus Christ has sparked off a controversy as the ruling BJP government sought a report from local authorities regarding the status of the land that was earmarked for the project.
Revenue Minister R Ashoka had said that the land allotted was gomal (grazing) and not a barren one as claimed by Shivakumar. “I have asked the deputy commissioner of Ramanagara district to submit a report on the land allotment,” he added.
DK Shivakumar’s move to ‘donate’ land for Jesus Christ statue in Karnataka invited sharp criticism from the BJP with former Union minister Ananthkumar Hegde attacked him by saying, “A Tihar returned gentleman is trying to please his Italian mother for a post by demonstrating his gallantry through a statue of Jesus Christ. It will not be surprising if more Ghulams (slaves) from Congress jumped into the arena of appeasement politics.”
The statue is slated to be 114 feet, 13 feet of which would be comprised of steps, which have already been laid. The famous ‘Christ The Redeemer’ statue in Rio Di Janeiro, Brazil stands at 98 feet, excluding its 26-feet pedestal.
