CM rejects Wakf Board’s claim on granting permission to open 10 colleges for girls in Karnataka

Bommai said issue related to opening of colleges by Wakf Board is not discussed at all

Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Thursday December 1 rejected the claim by Karnataka Wakf Board Chairman Maulana Shafti Saadi that the government has given consent to the board to open 10 colleges for girl students in the State.

Mr. Bommai said, “I don’t know. It was not discussed in my government. This is not the stand of my government. If there is any issue, let the Wakf Board Chairman come and speak to me.”

On November 30, Karnataka Wakf Board Chairman had said, “We have decided to start 10 colleges for girls in various districts in the State at a cost of ₹2.5 crore per college. The government has given consent to this project.”

The new colleges will be opened in Dakshina Kannada, Shivamogga, Kodagu, Chikkamagaluru, Raichur, Koppal, Kalaburagi, and other districts in the State. The board has identified 16 acres of land in Dakshina Kannada district, the Wakf Board Chairman said.

Mr. Bommai clarified the stand of the government while speaking to reporters after paying tributes to Kengal Hanumanthaiah (1908-1980) on his death anniversary, at the State secretariat. The Chief Minister recalled the contribution of Kengal Hanumanthaiah to the construction of Vidhana Soudha and the unification of Karnataka.

On the border row with Maharashtra, Mr. Bommai said the Maharashtra government’s petition would not be maintainable in the Supreme Court. “Our team of lawyers will argue our case as per the provisions of the Constitution and law.” 

The border row dates back to the reorganisation of States on linguistic lines. Maharashtra laid claim to Belagavi, which was part of the erstwhile Bombay Presidency as it has a sizable Marathi-speaking population. It also laid claim to 80 Marathi-speaking villages, which are now part of Karnataka.