SHIVAMOGGA/BENGALURU: Senior BJP legislator and former deputy chief minister
KS Eshwarappa
sparked fresh controversy on Friday by saying they will reclaim 36,000 temples that were destroyed by Muslim rulers to build mosques on top of them.
“All 36,000 temples will be restored without clashes, abiding by the law, in a peaceful manner as per court judgments,” Eshwarappa said. “Let them [Muslims] build mosques elsewhere. We cannot allow them to build masjids over our temples.”
Eshwarappa recently resigned as rural development and panchayat raj minister after he was accused in an abetment to suicide case in connection with the death of contractor Santosh Patil.
His remarks on temples comes amid ongoing rows over the
Gyanvapi
mosque in Varanasi and the Shahi Eidgah Mosque in Mathura.
On April 21, a temple-like structure was allegedly discovered beneath an old mosque on the outskirts of Mangaluru in Dakshina Kannada district, sparking a mandir-masjid controversy.
Vishwa Hindu Parishad leaders appealed to the district administration to stop renovation work till documents were verified.
Endorsing Eshwarappa’s views,
Ram Sena
chief,
Pramod Muthalik
, said: “If peace is to prevail, then all temples that were destroyed and converted into mosques must be returned to Hindus.”