Bengaluru: Don't take our streets, trees, walls for Indira Canteen, say protestors

Bengaluru: The state government's ambitious Indira Canteen is wading into one controversy after another. The recent move of demolishing 300-year-old Rameshwaram temple compound at Chamrajpet, to make way for the canteen, has stirred a hornet's nest.

Hundreds of residents took objection to BBMP's move of demolishing the compound wall and staged a protest. Chamrajpet corporator Kokila Chandrashekar and her husband Chandrashekar, a former corporator, arrived at the spot and tried to pacify the protestors.

Protestors questioned why the premises of a sacred Hindu temple, which has a 300-year-old history, was being targeted. Chandrashekar was upset with the protestors and even lost his cool.

“Chandrashekar did not heed people's opinion. He claimed that they get tickets from their political party, contest elections and win. He said that there was no need to take people's opinion,” Upadhya explained.

He added that irked Chandrashekar even raised his hand towards him and threatened to manhandle. But people present over there pacified Chandrashekar.

Protestors’ posts on the recent development on the Facebook page went viral evoked mixed comments.

While some said it was 'okay' to demolish the compound of Rameshwaram temple to accommodate the canteen to feed the needy and poor at subsidised rates, others challenged whether the government had any guts to touch a mosque or a church to make way for Indira Canteen.

Some users even suggested alternate locations for the canteen in Chamrajpet ward.

Sources said that Muzrai Department was under pressure to grant permission for construction of the canteen on the temple premises.