‘Mother Chamundi has called me’: Banu Mushtaq inaugurates Mysuru Dasara festival, says ‘let’s enrich our lives by respecting others’ beliefs and cultures’

Commenting on the controversy stoked over her religious identity, she said that kings in the Wadiyar dynasty had not discriminated along the lines of religion. “My uncle was Sepoy Mohammed Gaus, who was a bodyguard of Maharaja Jayachamarajendra Wadiyar. He (the king) believed in Muslims, and did not doubt them. He made them part of his guard,” she said.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and right-wing groups had opposed the inauguration of Mysuru Dasara by the award-winning author on the grounds that she did not respect Hindu traditions and had allegedly insulted Bhuneshwari, the Kannada goddess.

Former BJP MP Pratap Simha approached the Karnataka High Court and the Supreme Court over the issue. Both the courts dismissed Simha’s petition.

On her association with the Hindu religion, Mushtaq said that over the years she had lit hundreds of lamps, offered floral tributes, and “even received Mangalarathi”. “This is not new for me.”

A part of her autobiography, she said, will be released by the Kannada Pustaka Pradhikara, which deals with her relationship with the Hindu religion.

“Let us respect democratic idols. Let us enrich our lives by respecting the beliefs and cultures of others,” she said, noting that the phrase ‘Sarva Janaangada Shanthiya Thota‘ (garden of peace for all communities) encapsulated the tradition of Karnataka.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, in his address, took a dig at those opposing the inauguration of the festival by Mushtaq. “If you want to play politics, let us do it ….. But, for unnecessary reasons or to appease someone, politics should not be played,” he said, adding that a majority of the people in the state have accepted Mushtaq inaugurating the festival.

“Irrespective of our caste and religion, we should understand that we are Indians. If we do not understand the basic principles of our Constitution, it is an insult to the nation and the Constitution… It is right that Banu Mushtaq inaugurated the Dasara festival. As a Muslim woman and Kannada author, she has brought honour to the state,” the CM added.