BJP’s Pratap Simha does U-turn on naming KRS road after CM Siddaramaiah

MYSURU: Former Mysuru-Kodagu MP and BJP leader Pratap Simha, who had earlier backed renaming of the KRS Road as Siddaramaiah Arogya Marga, has now done a U-turn and said that if it was already named Princess Road during the time of the Mysuru kings, then that name should remain. Meanwhile, activist Snehamayi Krishna has presented several documents to the Mysuru City Corporation seeking the civic body to drop the renaming proposal.

“If the KSR road was already named Princess Road during the time of the Mysuru kings, then there is no need to change it, I don’t have any objection. I was under the impression that it did not have an official name and had hence backed the proposal to name it after Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. If the road already has an official name, the fresh notification should be withdrawn”, Simha said on Monday.

ಮೈಸೂರು ಪರಂಪರೆ ಉಳಿಸೋಣ: ಕೆಆರ್ಎಸ್ ಗೆ ತೆರಳುವ ಮಾರ್ಗದ ಪ್ರಿನ್ಸೆಸ್ ರಸ್ತೆಯನ್ನು ಸಿದ್ದರಾಮಯ್ಯ ಆರೋಗ್ಯ ಮಾರ್ಗ ಎಂದು ಮರುನಾಮಕರಣ ಮಾಡದೇ ಪರಂಪರೆಯನ್ನು ಉಳಿಸಿ.

ಪ್ರಿನ್ಸೆಸ್ ರಸ್ತೆಯ ಐತಿಹಾಸಿಕ ಮಹತ್ವ.

ಕೆಆರ್ಎಸ್ ರಸ್ತೆ ಎಂದು ಜನಪ್ರಿಯವಾಗಿರುವ ರಾಜಕುಮಾರಿ(Princess) ರಸ್ತೆ ಕೇವಲ ರಸ್ತೆಯ ಹೆಸರಲ್ಲದೆ ಐತಿಹಾಸಿಕ ಮತ್ತು ಸಾಂಸ್ಕೃತಿಕ… pic.twitter.com/rhUJ7FtIfC

— Yaduveer Wadiyar (@yaduveerwadiyar) December 26, 2024

Further, he said, “The Mysuru kings have done a lot for the city and so also have elected representatives who came later. Let us not venture into renaming a road which already has a name. Instead, a road in a new layout can be named after Siddaramaiah and it will be more meaningful. When I inquired with the city corporation about renaming the KRS road, they said it did not have an official name. Hence, I supported naming it after the CM, but it took several twists and turns”.

On allegations that he had gone soft on Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Pratap Simha said, “For the last 11 years, I have opposed him on issues of principles and religion. I was the only one who firmly opposed Siddaramaiah’s caste politics and defeated some of his efforts. The CM had planned to name the Mysuru airport after Tipu Sultan, but I stopped it. I have never been soft about him”.

He also dismissed rumours of him joining the Congress saying, “There is no inevitable situation that I have to join the Congress. In fact, some people in the Congress see it inevitable to join the BJP, ask those who had offered me a Congress ticket. If I had to join the Congress, I would have done so during the time of the election, why would I do it now?”.

Attacking CM Siddaramaiah, he said, “I come from the part of Old Mysore region which suffered the most because of him. Two cases were filed against me for taking up the electoral fight in Varuna constituency and after his government came to power, five cases were registered against me. Siddaramaiah is anti-Hindu and casteist. He opposed installation of a Kempegowda statue in Mysuru”.

Meanwhile, Snehamayi Krishna has written to the MCC to install a board declaring KRS Road and Princess Road. He also mentioned that the civic body should drop the proposal to rename the road as Siddaramaiah Arogya Marga. He also provided railway documents to support the claim that the thoroughfare was in fact named Princess Road.