Cong leader sparks row, says Muslim king donated land for Udupi Krishna temple

UDUPI: Congress leader from Dakshina Kannada district, Mithun Rai, on Wednesday stoked a controversy by stating that Muslim rulers donated land for the Udupi Sri Krishna Math. He was addressing an event titled ‘Nammora Masidi Noda Banni’ at Puthige village in Moodabidri taluk.

“The land for the Udupi Krishna Mutt was donated by Muslim rulers”, Mithun Rai said in Tulu while addressing the gathering. The short video clip where he made a controversial statement has gone viral on social media and many people have expressed their outrage over his controversial remarks.

Speaking to the media, Udupi MLA K Raghupati Bhat said Mithun Rai’s claim that a Muslim ruler had donated land for Krishna Matha was completely false.

Udupi MLA K Raghupati Bhat said Mithun Rai’s claim that a Muslim ruler had donated land for Krishna Matha was false.

“There is no document stating that land for Udupi Krishna Mutt was given by Muslim kings, and this is a lie. The Krishna Mutt land is related to Anantheshwar. As per historical documents, King Rama Bhoja gave the land to Anantheshwar Temple. It is said that the current Jamia mosque was built on land belonging to the Janga Mutt. Udupi is known for harmony. Saint Madhwacharya established the Krishna Mutt 850 years ago. Mithun Rai should think about what happened in Ayodhya, Mathura and Kashi. Only now, temples are becoming free in this country”, he added.

Mithun Rai spoke to the media after his controversial statement went viral in the social media.

After the controversial statement about the Udupi Sri Krishna Mutt went viral, Mithun Rai spoke to the media and said, “I am not a historian and during the event, BJP MLA Umanath Kotyan, the temple priest, and the church father were present on stage. My intention was not to bring division and disharmony in the district. I only gave this as an example. I have reiterated Pejawar Shree’s statement. The same statement was reported in the media and I have no intention to hurt someone. I will apologise if it was wrong”.

Pejawar seer Vishwaprasanna Teertha spoke to the media in Tumakauru and said, “Anyone can give statements, but if there is a valid proof or document to the claims, then they will be valued. There is a document that says King Rama Bhoja king gave the land to Udupi Shri Krishna Mutt. He (Mithun Rai) has misunderstood the Guru’s (previous seer) statement.”

Pejawar seer Vishwaprasanna Theertha said Mithun Rai may have misunderstood his predecessor’s statement.

“When Madhwacharya was going to Badari, he had to cross the river Ganges. The ruler of Turkara had assigned the army to prevent him from crossing the river. He told the soldiers to stay there until he returned and informed them that he was unarmed. Then he reached the shore and fearlessly walked towards the soldiers. Even the ruler of the Turkara was influenced by Acharya’s brilliance and he donated half of the kingdom”, the seer recalled.

Reacting to Mithun Rai’s controversial statement about Udupi Sri Krishna Matha, BJP national general secretary C T Ravi said, “It will not be surprising if Congress leaders will even say that the name ‘Bharath’ was given by Muslim rulers, in the coming days. They will say that Muslim rulers built Ram Mandir and the Kashi Vishwanath Temple. They will tell lies as if it is the truth”.