Baba Budangiri — Another Ayodhya in the Making?

N.Divakar

"We will turn Baba Budangiri into Another Ayodhya,” declared Pravin Togadia at Chikmagalur in Karnataka during Datta Jayanthi celebrations at Baba Budangiri, where he rushed from Gujarat immediately after election results were out. The Dargah/Peetha in Baba Budangiri is a symbol of syncretic culture, which is worshipped by both Hindus and Muslims for centuries.

The Sangh Parivar considers Karnataka to be the gateway to South India. In the post-Babri Masjid demolition phase, the frequency of communal conflicts or riots have increased in the state. While Gadag, Mangalore, Hubli, Belgaum and Chikmagalur districts have witnessed frequent communal conflicts, Madikeri in Coorg and Harapanahalli in Davangere districts have also witnessed communal disturbances recently. In the words of Prof. Muzaffar Assadi from Mysore University, Hindutva stands on two premises — firstly, communal riots always expand the social base of Hindutva; secondly, the broader the secular fabric the lesser the space available for Hindutva. He further asserts, “It is in this context that the syncretic culture becomes its primary target as its contribution to secular/ tolerant society is much more and that is coming in the way of creating a ‘political Hindu’. This is why Sangh Parivar is focusing on ‘liberating’ Dattatreya Peetha, also known as Baba Budan Dargah.”

The BJP has been frantically trying to assert its communal agenda in various forms in the state. The Rath Yathra, led by Advani that succeeded in rousing communal passions and hatred in the state, was preceded by riots that resulted in a 78-day curfew in Kolar, a communally sensitive town. Then, the issue of Idgah Maidan in Hubli was well orchestrated by the BJP to serve its own political ends. Though the issue fizzled out, much to the dismay of the BJP, it definitely succeeded to some extent, in reaping political gains by sowing the seeds of communal hatred.

The nefarious activities of the VHP-Bajrang Dal combine got a shot-in-the-arm in the year 1998 when they took out 5 Rath Yathras from different parts of Karnataka to culminate at Chikmagalur, just before the beginning of Datta Jayanthi Utsav at Baba Budangiri hills. Bajrang Dal activists tore down the green flag atop the Dargah and hoisted a saffron flag, of course, under the direct supervision of the police officials. More than 10,000 people assembled at the Baba Budangiri hills and the police allowed them to hold a rally to the Dargah. An idol of Dattatreya was also installed inside the cave and a puja was performed. The district administration and the police remained mute spectators, thus revealing the definite communal bias of the administration. Ironically, this is the administration under the so-called ‘secular’ Congress government.

In 1999, Datta Jayanthi was not conducted on a grand scale, but the Bajrang Dal formed a ‘liberation’ squad demanding the handover of the Dargah entirely to the Hindus and warned of bloodshed if their demand was not met. The Ramzan festival in 2000 was preceded by chappal garlanding of Ram idols by communal miscreants that led to brutal attack on Muslim houses. In the name of celebrating the 75th birthday of Ashok Singhal at Hubli in 2001, VHP rallyists went on a riot spree, torching a number of vehicles and Muslim-owned shops. They also tried to hoist saffron flag atop the Idgah in Hubli.

Baba Budangiri and Syncretism

‘Sri Guru Dattatreya Swami Baba Budan Peetha’ — the name of the Dargah/Peetha itself bears witness to the syncretic culture. It is considered to be the oldest Sufi centre of Southern India. In fact, many Muslim as well as Hindu rulers have patronised the Dargah and contributed much wealth and land. Local stories express their admiration for both Baba Budan and Dattatreya. Thus, the Hindu or Muslim character of the Dargah/Peetha was never an issue.

The available history says that one Dada Hayath, his real name being Abdul Azeez Macci, considered to be a direct disciple of the Prophet, was sent to India in 11th century from Saudi Arabia to spread the message of Islam and peace, in true tradition of Sufism. In fact, Dada Hayath’s religious preaching did not target Hindus as a religious community. Rather, it targeted local landlords (palegars in local parlance) who were highly oppressive against the common masses. History says that the palegars did not tolerate the intervention of Dada Hayath into their domain, as his mission was about to affect their stronghold and dominance. On many occasions, they tried to eliminate him but failed.

According to some accounts, Dattatreya is a later phenomenon and it could develop a syncretic culture by synthesizing Shaivite, Vaishnavite and Sufi culture together. The people of the region believe that Bababudan is an incarnation of Dattatreya. Having a long history in Karnataka, the Dattatreya tradition – a part of Awadhut tradition, upholds the idea of a formless god, and condemns caste and sacrificial rituals performed by Brahmin priests. Also a long tradition of the Dattatreya and Sufism going hand in hand can be witnessed by the fact that Baba Budan and Dattatreya have become interchangeable.

Tracing the Dispute

A dispute arose in the early ’60s between two government departments over the control of the Dargah. The Wakf department of the government of Mysore (as was known then) claimed that the Dargah/Peetha would come under its jurisdiction, which was challenged by the muzrai department, which had the Dargah/Peetha under its control at that time. The point to be noted here is that the then Sajjade Nashin supported the muzrai department, on reasons that, the Dargah belonged to both Hindus and Muslims and it is not an exclusive domain of the Muslims. The government in 1975 ordered the Dargah to be handed over to the Wakf board. But the Sessions judge at Chikmagalur quashed this order of the government and the Wakf board challenged the lower court’s order in the high court. The plea was dismissed by the High Court. The Supreme Court also upheld the lower court’s judgement. In 1991, the High Court of Karnataka passed a judgement stating that the Dargah comes under the jurisdiction of muzrai department and the Sajjade Nashin is the sole administrator of the Dargah/Peetha. It is another story that the state government has appointed a panel to monitor the administration that infringed upon the rights of the caretaker and that have powers to intervene in everyday affairs of the Dargah. The judgement has also made it clear that neither the disciples nor devotees of a particluar religion or faith can claim exclusive right to worship at the said institution. Until the ‘80s, apart from this dispute at government level, there was no other dispute whatsoever.

But, the Sangh Parivar has made it a dispute, and is claiming exclusive right over the Dargah/Peetha. This is happening in spite of the Home Minister’s assurance, on the floors of Parliament in 1998, that the culture, character and tradition of the Dargah would be protected. It is demanding a high level enquiry to investigate the pre-1975 position, performing of Hindu rituals in the Dargah/Peetha and handover of the Dargah/Peetha to the Hindus. VHP has formed a ‘Datta Peetha Samrakshana Samiti’. Following the destruction of Babri Masjid, VHP got further emboldened and since then it is trying to conduct Datta Jayanthi Utsav every year in December. Its design is to destroy the basic character of composite culture of the Dargah/Peetha.

Goebbelsian Arguments

The Sangh Parivar argues that Muslims are in no way connected to the Baba Budan Dargah. They claim it is purely a Hindu shrine allegedly occupied by Muslims in the early 20th century. But there is no evidence to prove this. The Sangh Parivar also argues that Hyder Ali conquered this region in 1770 and appointed a Muslim to collect revenue, whose samadhi is in Jannat Nagar, 2 Kms away from the Dargah. But, the history says otherwise. The allegations of cow slaughter and burial of family members of the Shakadri in the vicinity of Dargah has no evidence whatsoever. In fact, the Shakadri is not receiving any grants from the government.

The Design and the Political Economy

Muzaffar Assadi says that other than creating Hindu identity and a bastion in the south, Hindutva’s attempt to appropriate the Baba Budangiri also lies in the political economy of the coffee plantation. Dargah had large area of lands under coffee plantation – Sangh Parivar argues that it had more than 6930 acres of land – which were disposed off by the caretaker. Any reclaiming of land would definitely bring in huge capital to the Hindutva fold. This is the reason why they have demanded, “ survey of coffee cultivation by the authorities of Survey of India and measures for vacating unauthorised cultivation.” Further it has also demanded prohibition on the sale of property by the caretaker. Its larger design of capturing the Dargah for economic reasons became clear when it calculated the total income from different sources such as business, shops, etc., to be more than 32 lakh rupees.

Baba Budangiri - Another Flashpoint

The Sangh Parivar may not find a Godhra in Karnataka but certainly it can find an Ayodhya in Baba Budangiri. Because, here too, the political opposition to the BJP is in disarray, with the ruling Congress harping on soft Hindutva line. By adopting the soft line, the Congress is only helping the process of state machinery getting communalised, which is a very dangerous trend. This stands vindicated by the inclusion of Sangh Parivar men in the Monitoring Panel, through a government order, which has effectively taken away the powers of Sajjade Nashin in practical terms. Hence, Baba Budangiri has all the potential to turn into a flashpoint in the state politics. It is a positive sign that some progressive groups, left parties and secular intellectuals have picked up the gauntlet to fight the Sangh Parivar. While CPI organized a rally to the Dargah against communal fascists, all Left organizations, including Karnataka Vimochana Ranga (KVR), CPI,CPI(M), CPI(ML) (Liberation), and a number of democratic forces participated in a rally in the following month under the banner of “Baba Budangiri Harmony Convention”. It is for the left-democratic forces to effectively counter the offensive of the Sangh Parivar. q