Banu Mushtaq Inaugurates Mysuru Dasara At Chamundi Hills After Supreme Court Ruling

International Booker Prize-winning writer Banu Mushtaq inaugurated the Mysuru Dasara festival on Monday at the Chamundeshwari temple on Chamundi Hills, showering flowers on the idol of Goddess Chamundeshwari during the auspicious “Vrushchika Lagna”, PTI reported.

Priests chanted Vedic hymns as Mushtaq performed the ritual, and she was accompanied by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and several state ministers.

According to PTI, Mushtaq earlier visited the temple with the Chief Minister and other dignitaries and offered prayers to the goddess, referred to locally as the “Naada Devate” (state deity).

The invitation to Mushtaq has drawn objections from BJP leaders and others after an old video circulated in which she had reportedly expressed reservations about worshipping the Kannada language as “Goddess Bhuvaneshwari”, saying it was exclusionary to minorities. PTI reported that Mushtaq has said parts of her earlier speech were selectively circulated on social media and that her remarks were distorted.

The controversy reached the courts, wherein the Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a plea challenging the Karnataka High Court’s decision upholding the state government’s invitation to Mushtaq.

Mushtaq’s inauguration formally opened the 11-day Dasara, also called “Nada Habba”, which will conclude on 2 October with the Jamboo Savaari procession, caparisoned elephants carrying the idol of Chamundeshwari in a Howdah covered with gold.

PTI reported that police have put in place security and crowd-management arrangements for the festival.

(With inputs from PTI)