BJP national president Amit Shah said that Jnanpith award recipient poet Kuvempu’s literary works were from the inspiration he derived from the teachings of Swami Vivekananda.

He was speaking on the sidelines of his visit to Kuppalli, the birthplace of the renowned poet in Shivamogga. “I am extremely glad to visit the place, and I salute the great poet who was inspired by the teachings of Swami Vivekananda,” he told Times of India.

Popularly known by his pen name Kuvempu, Kuppali Venkatappa Puttappa was an Indian novelist, poet, playwright, critic and thinker. He is widely regarded as the greatest Kannada poet of the 20th century.Lauding leading Kannada poet Kuvempu for unifying people through poems,

Amit Shah castigated Chief Minister Siddaramaiah for doing "disservice" to the great writer by dividing people for petty political gains. "The kind of politics Siddaramaiah is playing is a disservice to Kuvempu's dream of building a great Karnataka. He is pitting one community against another, which is reprehensible and he will pay for this," asserted Shah at a party rally in the Malnad region.

He also added that Kuvempu and his teachings were even more relevant today given recent developments in the Lingayat bid for a separate religion. Karnataka recommended separate religion tag for Lingayats last week and followed it up by according minority status to the community.

Shah stressed on Kuvempu’s ‘Vishwa Manava’ (universal man) message by saying they were relevant today. Kuvempu’s ‘Vishwa Manava’ ideology advocated universal humanism and opposed casteism and superstitious practices. “The kind of politics Siddaramaiah is playing is a disservice to Kuvempu's dream of building a great Karnataka. He is pitting one community against another, which is reprehensible and he will pay for this," asserted Shah at a rally in Shivamogga as per Business Standard.