BANGALORE, DECEMBER 16: The Karnataka government is exploring the possibility of running the historical Mysore Palace as a public trust, on the lines of England's Buckingham Palace.Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister D B Chandre Gowda told newsmen here on Wednesday that the government was not in favour of taking over the historic monument - something the previous (Janata Dal) government intended.Noting that the government `cannot own everything', the minister said that the Mysore Palace should be considered a public trust property on the lines of Buckingham Palace.``We believe that the Mysore kings were benevolent rulers. They should be treated with respect and not sent out of the palace in their hawai slippers.,'' the Minister said. Members of the royal family would be taken into confidence before coming to a decision, he noted.Favouring a ``via media'' solution to the issue, Chandre Gowda revealed that officials had been directed to get a copy of the trust deed of England's BuckinghamPalace. ``They (the Britons) are running the Buckingham Palace for hundreds of years without any problem. We should be able to do the same in the case of Mysore Palace,'' he said.The government acknowledged the ``emotional bondage'' of Old Mysoreans towards the palace. ``Otherwise, the palace would have been taken over at the time of accession, 50 years ago,'' he pointed out.Attempts of the previous government to take over the palace came to nought when the High Court directed the state government to pay a compensation of Rs 35 crore to Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar -descendant of the Mysore royal family. The Janata Dal government went on an appeal thereafter.Chandre Gowda said he would ``look into'' the status of the appeal filed by the state government.
