Karnataka minister rejects Pramoda Devi Wadiyar's call to move the Jamboo Savari off Vijayadaśamī, says the State pays for the Ambāri
Yathindra Siddaramaiah called it his personal view pending talks with the Chief Minister, and said the government will send an emissary or a formal reply.
- The Hindu
- News18
Mysuru district in-charge minister Yathindra Siddaramaiah on Monday rejected Pramoda Devi Wadiyar's suggestion to hold the Jamboo Savari on Rathotsava day instead of Vijayadaśamī, The Hindu reported. Speaking to reporters in Mysuru, he said it would not be possible to shift the procession to keep the palace free for the erstwhile royal family's Āyudha Pūjā and Vijayadaśamī rites, adding, "However, this is my personal opinion.
I am yet to discuss the matter with the Chief Minister." He also rejected her proposal to restrict cultural programmes at the palace to the first seven days of Dasara.
He said the Palace Board and the palace, barring the portion allotted to the family as residence, belong to the Government of Karnataka, which has the authority to decide how Dasara is conducted. Asked about reports that Pramoda Devi had threatened to go to court or withhold the golden howdah, he said the government would deal with that if it arose, but that such "extreme" measures were unnecessary because the government was willing to resolve her grievances.
He contested her statement that the Ambāri is only lent, saying, "We give money and take it." He acknowledged that Dasara involves religious rituals performed by the family and said facilitating them was the government's responsibility, while recalling that the State has organised Dasara as the Nāḍa Habba since the early 1970s.
News18 reported that he rejected her allegations of lapses and said she should have raised them directly instead of releasing a letter to the media. He said the festival passed off smoothly apart from the cancellation of the Vajramuṣṭi Kāḷaga on Vijayadaśamī.
The government will either send an official emissary to meet Pramoda Devi or issue a formal reply, he said.
Key data
Dasara organised by the State as Nāḍa Habba since the early 1970s (minister). Royal family's proposal: State cultural events limited to the first 7 days.
Why it matters
The exchange turns a festival complaint into an open question over who holds the religious centre of Mysuru Dasara: the State that stages it or the family whose rites it grew from. The promised formal reply will show whether the two sides negotiate or head to court.
GK: did you know?
The Mysuru Dasara is a 10-day festival made up of the nine nights of Navarātri and Vijayadaśamī, observed on the tenth day of the bright fortnight of Āśvina.
