Politicians fight over credit for redeveloping fort near Belagavi, Shivaji statue

BJP MLA Ramesh Jarkiholi has accused Belagavi Rural MLA Lakshmi Hebbalkar of trying to convert the inauguration of a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji in Rajhansgad fort into a Congress event

Supporters of MLAs Ramesh Jarkiholi and Lakshmi Hebbalkar are involved in a bitter battle over taking credit for developing Rajhansgad fort near Yellur in Belagavi district. Both the leaders seem to have their eyes set on the Maratha voters who form a significant portion of the electorate in Belagavi Rural constituency.

Rajhansgad fort is on the top of Yellur mountain, around 12 kilometres from Belagavi city. It is one of the popular places to visit near Belagavi for tourists. The fort lies in the constituency of Congress MLA Lakshmi Hebbalkar.

Yellur had hit the headlines a few years ago when some supporters of the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES) put up a board declaring that the village belongs to Maharashtra, and not Karnataka.

Some Maratha leaders claim that Shivaji Maharaj had camped in the fort for some time, and stationed his soldiers atop the mountain. However, the district gazette does not mention this.

The redeveloped fort has a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji, which is likely to be unveiled on March 5. The project was executed by the Department of Public Works, with ₹3.5 crore released by the Department of Tourism.

Supporters of Congress MLA Lakshmi Hebbalkar say invitations have been sent to Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, and some leaders from Maharashtra, and senior Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and D.K. Shivakumar.

Ramesh Jarkiholi has alleged that Ms. Hebbalkar is trying to convert the inauguration into a Congress event, for her own political benefit. He raised the issue recently during a meeting of supporters in Hire Bagewadi. He alleged that she was acting as if she had single-handedly developed the fort, and that she had deliberately ignored the contribution of the BJP government.