Kalaburagi station repainted from green to white after protest by right-wing group

Members of the Hindu Jagruti Sene said the structure of the Kalaburagi railway station looked similar to that of a mosque, with a dome-shaped structure in the centre and the colour green.

The Kalaburagi railway station was repainted from green to white on Tuesday after members of a right-wing group raised objections to the colour of the building.

The Kalaburagi railway station was repainted from green to white after members of a right-wing group raised objections. (HT Photo)

Members of the Hindu Jagruti Sene said the structure of the railway station looked similar to that of a mosque, with a dome-shaped structure in the centre and the colour green.

On Tuesday, several Sene members protested and demanded the officials repaint it soon. The Sene members also warned that if the structure was not repainted in 15 days, they would repaint the entire railway station in saffron.

“We are protesting against the authorities because the green colour of the railway station looks like they are promoting a certain religion. We want an explanation for this. This is not a private property that anyone can paint whatever colour they like. This is a property of the central government,” Shubham Pawar, member of Hindu Jagruti Sene, Kalaburagi, said.

“The authorities should paint it according to the colour of the central government. It can also paint the station according to the colour of the national flag or the Karnataka flag. Are they trying to create communal tension by painting it green?” Pawar said.

“Let them paint any colour other than green. We have no opposition to that. If this is not done, the Hindu Jagruti Sene will take matters into its own hands and paint the entire structure in saffron,” he added.

After several right-wing group members staged a protest march in Kalaburagi on Tuesday against the railway officials, the authorities decided to repaint the railway station white amid police security.

The group questioned the authorities regarding the reason behind painting the structure green, saying the railway department is not associated with the colour in any way. “Railway buildings are either grey or dark grey. Are any trains green? This colour is not associated with it in any way. So, why have they done this? Whose decision is it?” Pawar questioned.

Another member of the right-wing group said the green colour of the railway station gives one the experience of visiting a mosque.

“We don’t know why the authorities have done this. But it looks like they are favouring one particular religion. The Hindu Jagruti Sene condemns this.”

“We demand that it should not be related to any religion. It can be painted white. Most government buildings are either white or red,” Pawar said.

Meanwhile, the authorities have maintained that the painting was taken up on the orders of higher authorities and based on the suggestion of the architects.

“The painting was done based on the orders of higher authorities and on the suggestion of the architects,” an official who did not want to be named, said.

Earlier in November, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Pratap Simha stirred a row over the structure of a bus stop in Mysuru, saying that he would bulldoze the bus shelter in the city that has dome-shaped structures like a mosque. He had said, “If there is a big dome in the middle and two smaller domes next to each other, it is a mosque.”

Later, the authorities demolished the two domes constructed at the bus stop.