The troubled waters of regionalism

Chhatrapati Shivaji, Maharashtra’s iconic king in the 17th century, used the art of guerilla warfare quite effectively to fight his enemies of the day and to date people swear by his name. But the present rulers of Maharashtra, it seems, haven’t learnt much from him. How else would they explain fighting two battles at a time — one with Karnataka over Belgaum, Gulbarga and other 800 villages and another with Andhra Pradesh over Godavari water.

Chief Minister Ashok Chavan and his supporters may argue that he started none of them, but he certainly had the opportunity to diffuse at least one conflict. Maharashtra’s dispute with Karnataka over Belgaum, Nipani, Karvar and Gulbarga is at least 50 years old and it was renewed after the centre filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court that said that language was not the only parameter to decide the state each region is to be a part of.

There was an outburst in the state over the snub as it was projected as Delhi’s bias towards Maharashtra. The root of the dispute, though, is the Mahajan Commission report of the 60s’ that gave away Belgaum to Karnataka even though majority of the people there spoke Marathi.

The Maharashtra- Karnataka enmity is even older and dates back to the Tipu Sultan era. Tipu Sultan is a revered king in Karnataka, just as Shivaji is in Maharashtra. The British who eventually defeated him were helped by the Maratha armies. The people of Karnataka still hold this against the Marathas and the hatred is ingrained in both sides.

A bigger and bitter battle is guaranteed after Karnataka government files its affidavit on the issue later in the course of hearing. It is said that Karnataka may dispute the inclusion of four districts in Maharashtra on the basis of lingusitic majority and Mumbai being one of them. It is no secret that Marathi- speaking people are in a minority in the state capital and Karnataka is most likely to poke fun at Maharashtra. The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena and the Shiv Sena, the self- styled guardians of the Marathis’ cause in the state, will be back in business then.

Maharashtra’s war with Andhra Pradesh over Godavari water was restarted after Telugu Desam Party chief Chandrababu Naidu tried to enter Babhli dam site in Maharashtra, accusing Maharashtra of stealing water that was meant for Andhra.

It would have been wiser for the state to allow Naidu enter and leave quietly, but for inexplicable reasons, Naidu was arrested. Naidu, who is confident of a revival of his party’s fortunes in AP following YSR’s death, refused to seek bail and politicised his arrest which in reality is no worse than a detention in an airconditioned guest- house. The worse part is that two Congress chief ministers are now squabbling over the leader who is looking to thwart the UPA equations.