The Maharashtra Assembly on Tuesday unanimously passed a resolution reiterating the state’s claim on 865 villages in three districts and cities including Belgavi, Karwar, Bidar, Nipani and Bhalki in Karnataka.
The resolution comes in the wake of a similar stance adopted by the Karnataka Assembly on December 22nd when Karnataka CM Bommai vowed not to cede even an inch of land to Maharashtra.
The Maharashtra government said it will continue the legal fight for the disputed areas in the Supreme Court and support the Maharashtrians living in these areas in every way it can. Tuesday’s resolution also condemned Karnataka’s administration for its ‘high-handedness’ and anti-Marathi stand.
The resolution demanded the Centre’s intervention in implementing the decisions taken during the December 14 meeting between union home minister Amit Shah and the two chief ministers. “The centre should direct Karnataka to act upon the resolution agreed upon by the two states and also ask the neighbouring state to ensure the safety of the Marathi-speaking people in the disputed area.
“Police attack protesters brutally, vehicles with the Maharashtra number plates are attacked, lands owned by Marathi speaking people are acquired forcefully. The ministers appointed by the state government for the better coordination between the two states are not allowed to enter the disputed area. All this is a deliberate attempt by the Karnataka administration to oppress our people living there,” the resolution stated.
Chief minister Eknath Shinde also apprised the house about the various welfare schemes being implemented by Maharashtra government for Marathi-speaking people in the border area. In addition to giving pension to families of those who lost their lives fighting for the cause of inclusion in Maharashtra, the state government has also extended health schemes for people living in these border villages. The state government, he said, will also request Karnataka to not impose Kannada on people whose mother tongue is Marathi.
The resolution was unanimously passed. From the leader of the Opposition in the legislative council, Ambadas Danve, who demanded that the state file a fresh writ petition before the Supreme Court to Uddhav Thackeray, they all welcomed Tuesday’s resolution. On Monday, while speaking in the legislative council, Uddhav Thackeray had proposed that the disputed area should be declared as a Union Territory until a proper resolution is arrived at in the Supreme Court. Deputy chief minister Devendra Fadnavis clarified a day later that such a proposal had been made to the Supreme Court in 2005 but was turned down.
“By filing an interlocutory application as part of our petition on border dispute, the state government had requested the apex court in 2005 to impose central rule in the disputed area. We had requested the SC for the status of union territory until the final decision is pending,” said Fadnavis. He added that once the SC turned down that demand it was important for the state to not incur contempt of court.
Responding to Maharashtra Assembly’s resolution, advocate Ravindra Totiger who is part of the advocates’ team collecting documents for Karnataka on the border case, said the SC only needs solid proof on why a particular place belonged to either state. “Maharashtra might have claimed its right over 865 villages including Belagavi by passing a unanimous resolution in both the legislative houses, however, it must state how and why those places belong to it,” he said.
Another legal expert, advocate M B Zirali who is member of Karnataka’s advocates in the Supreme Court, reiterated such resolution passed in state assemblies have no bearing on the eventual outcome of the case. “We have hundreds of documents to prove that Belagavi and 865 villages which are claimed by Maharashtra, are part and parcel of Karnataka.”
The dispute between the two states dates back to the State Reorganisation Act of 1956 when states were divided on linguistic basis. People in Belgavi (then Belgaum) and other areas have been demanding their inclusion in Maharashtra ever since. They point out that the Marathi-speaking population is in majority in these areas. The Karnataka government has been opposing this, and for the past several weeks, political leaders from the two states have been involved in verbal jousting over the issue.