Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Tuesday, January 13, denied the BJP’s allegation that the name of MK Gandhi had been removed from a stadium in Tumakuru.
Earlier, the indoor sports facility located within the Mahatma Gandhi Stadium complex in Tumakuru did not have a separate name and was commonly referred to as the Mahatma Gandhi Indoor Stadium. However, a nameboard reading “Dr G Parameshwara Indoor Sports Complex” was installed about three days ago.
Responding to the controversy, Parameshwara said, “Who will take away the name of Mahatma Gandhi Stadium? We are fighting against the name change of NREGA. Now tell us, will we take away the name of Mahatma Gandhi ourselves?”
He dismissed the allegations as baseless, stating that those claiming that Gandhi’s name was being removed were “crazy”.
The issue centres on the naming of an indoor sports facility located within the Mahatma Gandhi Stadium complex in Tumakuru, the district’s only stadium-level sports facility. The complex, developed under the Union government’s Smart City project at a cost of Rs 60 crore, includes an outdoor stadium and an indoor stadium situated in front of it.
Parameshwara said there was only a small shed-like structure that had been converted into an indoor stadium and that some people had written a letter seeking to name it after him.
Regarding the board bearing the name “Dr G Parameshwara Indoor Sports Complex,” the Minister said, “I don’t know about that, I have nothing to do with it. I had said to ask the concerned people.”
The change triggered protests by BJP workers, who objected to the use of Parameshwara’s name instead of Gandhi’s. On January 12, protesters gathered at the stadium between 5 pm and 7.30 pm. When no immediate action was taken by the district administration, some protesters entered the stadium premises and attempted to remove the nameplate. This led to a scuffle between the police and protesters, following which, more than 30 people were detained before the situation was brought under control.