Mysuru: The ongoing campaign for a ‘dalit chief minister’ by a section of dalit leaders in the State is slowly gaining pace in Mysuru, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s home district.
Janandolana Kriya Samiti, floated by the Chalavadi Mahasabha leaders who are led by former IAS officer K?Shivaram, has mobilised people ahead of the meeting of top leaders scheduled to be held in Mysuru and Chamarajanagar districts within the next 10 days.
A preliminary meeting of community elders was convened at Chamarajanagar on Friday and another is planned in Mysuru on Saturday.
The samiti has also put up posters to educate people about the issue. About 10,000 such posters have been circulated in both the districts, which have a sizeable population of dalits, with three assembly constituencies reserved for the scheduled caste in Nanjangud and?T?Narsipur in Mysuru district and Kollegal in Chamarajanagar district.
The Chamarajanagar parliamentary constituency is also reserved for a SC?candidate. The president of the Mysuru district unit of Chalavadi?Mahasabha, Hamsaraj, told Deccan Herald that the response had been encouraging with the community expressing solidarity with the clarion call for a dalit chief minister. The band of leaders led by Shivaram are expected to address meetings in Tumakuru, Chamarajanagar and then Mysuru. Mandya is expected to be next, however nothing is finalised yet, said Hamsaraj.
Another group seems to be busy working on an anti-campaign by removing the posters put up by the Samiti.
Two posters put up on the compound wall of a college on New Kantharaja Urs Road were torn up by Friday evening.
