'Not going to give an inch of land from this side': Yediyurappa takes on Maharashtra CM

On Monday, Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa condemned his Maharashtra counterpart's statement calling for the incorporation of Marathi-speaking areas into the state. Paying tribute to the people who laid down their lives for the cause of merging Karnataka's border areas with Maharashtra, Uddhav Thackeray on January 17 reiterated his government's commitment to bring back "Karnataka-occupied Marathi speaking and cultural areas". Yediyurappa affirmed that his government would not even give an inch of land from Karnataka to the neighbouring state. 

Earlier in the day, senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah slammed the Maharashtra CM for his statement and warned against instigating the people of Karnataka. Calling upon Thackeray to act in a responsible manner, the former CM made it clear that the people will never compromise or politicize on matters related to land, water and language of Karnataka. Incidentally, Congress is a key constituent of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra. 

Read: Uddhav Thackeray's Statement On Border Issue 'sheer Political One Upmanship'; Karnataka Minister

The dispute over Marathi-speaking areas

There has been a longstanding dispute between Maharashtra and Karnataka over the status of predominantly Marathi-speaking regions such as Belagavi. Speaking in the Maharashtra Assembly on December 20, 2019, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray re-ignited the tensions as he referred to these areas as 'Karnataka-occupied Maharashtra'. Moreover, he accused the BJP government in Karnataka of oppressing the Marathi-speaking people. 

Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray remarked, "Like PoK, there is a Karnataka-occupied Maharashtra. People in Belagavi are not only Hindus but also Marathi-speaking people and wanted to be part of Maharashtra. However, they are facing oppression from the BJP-led government in Karnataka. Even for speaking the truth, the Belagavi mayor was booked for treason."

However, Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa has maintained that the findings of the Mahajan Committee report should be accepted. He was referring to a commission formed in 1966 under Meher Chand Mahajan, a former Supreme Court judge, to look into the dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra. However, Maharashtra had refused to comply with the committee's report as it rejected the state's claim on Belagavi.

Read: BJP Govt In Karnataka Will Complete 5 Year Term & Return To Power Again: Amit Shah