MES gives rangoli boxes for ‘pro-Maratha’ slogans

The MES has also given model pictures rangoli drawings to be put outside the house, which include slogans like “Ek Maratha Laak Maratha” (One Maratha equals a lakh people) and “Mee Marathi” and “Jai Maharashtra”, said the above-cited people.

Amid a border dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra in Belagavi district, Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES) is giving “rangoli boxes” to Marathi households and asking people to use these colours to write pro-Marathi slogans outside their houses every morning, people close to developments said on Thursday.

MES is giving “rangoli boxes” to Marathi households and asking people to use these colours to write pro-Marathi slogans (HT Photo)

The people said these rangolis have begun appearing outside the homes in Desur village, which has a large Marathi population.

The MES has also given model pictures rangoli drawings to be put outside the house, which include slogans like “Ek Maratha Laak Maratha” (One Maratha equals a lakh people) and “Mee Marathi” and “Jai Maharashtra”, said the above-cited people.

The “Ek Maratha Laak Maratha” slogan was used during the reservation movement for Marathas in Maharashtra a few years ago.

Several families were seen drawing the rangoli in front of the houses, which is likely to continue till the election, the above-cited people said.

Roopa Patil-Hindalgekar, a resident of Desur and a primary school teacher at a government Marathi school in Belagavi taluk, said Marathis were excited to draw rangoli in front of the houses with slogans to state that they were Marathis.

“We are Hindus who draw rangoli in front of our houses daily. These new designs and slogans are just a way to express our love towards our language and culture,” she said.

The MES outfit was in its prime in the early 1960s and 1970s when most candidates backed by it won assembly seats in Belagavi.

In 2013, supporters of the MES did not win a single assembly seats but retained power of Belagavi City Corporation by winning 38 of the 58. However, it supporters have won only two of total 58 seats in 2021 city corporation.

One of the MES leaders who did not want to be named said the organisation has no income source like other political parties to offer household items.

“To avoid our people from promising votes for gifts to other parties we just offered the rangoli boxes. Since we have an emotional connection with our voters, we believe such reminders are enough to get us our votes,” he said.

MES office bearer and former legislator Manohar Kinekar, representing Belagavi rural constituency, said several hundred families drew rangolis in front of their houses with slogans.

“Marathis in the constituency are excited to write in front of their houses as they are Marathis and have promised would not accept any gift from other political outfits and promised their votes to the samiti,” he claimed.

Karnataka Sarvodaya Seva Sangha founder president Shrinivas Talukar said the government must book the anti-state activities case against the people who were drawing as ‘Jai Maharashtra’ in the rangoli in front of their houses which is against the interest of the state.

Belagavi Rural Congress legislator Laxmi Hebbalkar and former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Sanjay Patil were found distributing household things, including gas stoves, mixture grinders, pressure cookers, electric iron boxes, steel plates and glasses, and sarees to woo voters recently, MES alleged.