Dharwad: People from the Namdev Simpi community took out a protest rally and staged a dharna in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s office in Dharwad. They were seeking action against a local news paper from Shivamogga, for allegedly publishing a derogatory article on Namdev Maharaj, the saint whom the community considers God.
The protesters stated that a few days ago, the daily, in one of its columns, had published a derogatory article on Namdev Maharaj.
The protesters claimed that the article had shown Namdev Maharaj in poor light. “The article reads ‘Namdev was a dacoit and he, along with his accomplice, were looting the people. In this way, Namdev was an antisocial element’”, said the protesters.
According to the community, this is purely an attempt to tarnish the image of a saint and hurt the sentiments of the community members. The community strongly opposes such articles being published and circulated, protestors said. “No dailies have the right to write anything false about a person before studying the history”, they stated.
They demanded the chief minister to initiate immediate action against the person who has written the article and also on the publisher.
Community leaders Narayan Korpade, Bharathraj Pise, Dhananjay Pise, Surekha, Rashmi Pise, Rekha Khorpade and others were present at the dharna.
