Wilfred0198 at 01:52, 24 December 2025

2025-12-24T01:52:27Z

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{{Notability|date=January 2025}}
{{Essay-like|date=January 2025}}
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{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2024}}
On 27 December 2024, [[Kodava people|Kodava]] devotees belonging to Kattemad village in [[Madikeri]] taluk in [[Kodagu district]], [[Karnataka]] were stopped from going to the Sree Maha Mrithyunjaya Temple in their village and refused entry to the annual temple festival for wearing their traditional attire - sari for women and ''kupya chele'' ({{Lang|kod|kuppiya chele}}) for men -by temple management as fer baylaw. There has been extensive news coverage about the incident and its aftermath ever since.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Service |first1=Express News |title=Temple committee yet to decide on traditional Kodava attire in temple premises |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2025/Jan/06/temple-committee-yet-to-decide-on-traditional-kodava-attire-in-temple-premises |access-date=7 January 2025 |work=The New Indian Express |date=6 January 2025 |language=en |archive-date=7 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250107134238/https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2025/Jan/06/temple-committee-yet-to-decide-on-traditional-kodava-attire-in-temple-premises |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Background ==
The Kattemad Mruthunjaya temple is a renovated one; it was built around a ''keri'' Mahadeva linga in the wilderness using funds collected from Kodavas across Kodagu. The first annual temple festival was observed in December 2024. The village Kattemad is called Kattemadu in Kannada. The Nandetira Kodava clan were the hereditary village and temple chieftains. A discriminatory bylaw had been made to bar those wearing the Kodava dress without regard to ancestral practise, by an Arebhashe committee that occupied the temple in the recent past.<ref name="NIE 28">{{cite news |last1=Service |first1=Express News |date=28 December 2024 |title=Two communities clash over choice of attire during temple festival in Kodagu |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2024/Dec/28/two-communities-clash-over-choice-of-attire-during-temple-festival-in-kodagu |access-date=31 December 2024 |work=The New Indian Express |language=en |agency=New Indian Express |archive-date=31 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241231083804/https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2024/Dec/28/two-communities-clash-over-choice-of-attire-during-temple-festival-in-kodagu |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="SOM 30"/> Members of the Arebhashe community, claiming to be the temple committee, had enforced a dhoti-only dress code, leading to tension between both communities.<ref name="TOI 30">{{cite news |title=Jan 6 deadline to sort out Kodagu temple dress code row |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mysuru/jan-6-deadline-to-sort-out-kodagu-temple-dress-code-row/articleshow/116807062.cms |access-date=31 December 2024 |work=The Times of India |date=30 December 2024 |archive-date=18 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250118012951/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mysuru/jan-6-deadline-to-sort-out-kodagu-temple-dress-code-row/articleshow/116807062.cms |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Incident ==
Scores of Kodava community members, including women in traditional attire, were prevented from entering the Mrithyunjaya temple of their village by individuals from the Arebhashe community claiming to represent the temple management.<ref name="SOM 30">{{cite news |title=Ban orders in Kodagu village over Temple entry dispute |url=https://starofmysore.com/ban-orders-in-kodagu-village-over-temple-entry-dispute/ |access-date=31 December 2024 |work=Star of Mysore |date=30 December 2024 |archive-date=31 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241231042710/https://starofmysore.com/ban-orders-in-kodagu-village-over-temple-entry-dispute/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="SOM 29">{{cite news |title=Tension at Maha Mrithyunjaya Temple, Kattemad: Kodagu MLAs, MP call for community peace, restraint |url=https://starofmysore.com/tension-at-maha-mrithyunjaya-temple-kattemad-kodagu-mlas-mp-call-for-community-peace-restraint/ |access-date=31 December 2024 |work=Star of Mysore |date=29 December 2024 |archive-date=31 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241231095446/https://starofmysore.com/tension-at-maha-mrithyunjaya-temple-kattemad-kodagu-mlas-mp-call-for-community-peace-restraint/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The Kodavas were told by the accused individuals of the Arebhashe community to either remove their traditional dress or leave the premises.<ref name="SOM 30"/><ref name="SOM 29"/>The video footage went viral on social media and later drew criticism for the disrespect to the Kodava community.<ref name="SOM 29"/> It was claimed that the temple's by-law prohibited the traditional attire, but the Kodava community members vehemently denied it.<ref name="SOM 29"/> According to eye-witnesses, a few Kodava devotees outside the shrine chanted, "Maadhe (Mahadeva) Pore Powodhi (Parvathi) E Pore," (Praise Mahadeva Shiva, Praise Parvathi) invoking God's name at the shrine, which is an old Mahadeva Shiva temple renovated recently.<ref name="Stop">{{cite web |title=Kodavas Allegedly Stopped from Entering Temple in Traditional Attire by Saffron-Clad Group in Kodagu |url=https://www.kodaguexpress.com/post/kodavas-allegedly-stopped-from-entering-temple-in-traditional-attire-by-saffron-clad-group-in-kodagu |website=www.kodaguexpress.com |date=28 December 2024 |access-date=7 January 2025 |archive-date=7 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250107140750/https://www.kodaguexpress.com/post/kodavas-allegedly-stopped-from-entering-temple-in-traditional-attire-by-saffron-clad-group-in-kodagu |url-status=live }}</ref> The trouble actually began when some miscreants, pretending to be [[Vaishnava]], came with saffron flags, chanted 'Govinda, Govinda' and created a ruckus while verbally attacking the Kodava devotees.<ref name="Stop"/>

== Aftermath ==
The incident sparked an outrage among the Kodava community members who planned a 'Kodavara nade Kattemadu kade' ('Kodavas walk towards Kattemad', protest march) to protest the restrictions to their cultural practises.<ref name="SOM 30"/> [[Virajpet]] Kodava Samaja's honorary secretary Maletira Srinivas accused politically motivated individuals of attempting to strip the Kodavas of their rights and insulting Kodava women.<ref name="SOM 29"/> He had announced a peaceful 'Kattemad Chalo' protest during a press conference on the 28th of December, 2024.<ref name="KE 30">{{cite web |title=EXPLAINED: Why Prohibitory Orders Were Imposed In Kodagu Over Temple Entry Dress Code Row |url=https://www.kodaguexpress.com/post/explained-why-prohibitory-orders-were-imposed-in-kodagu-over-temple-entry-dress-code-row |website=The Kodagu Express |publisher=Kodagu Express Bureau |access-date=31 December 2024 |language=en |date=30 December 2024 |archive-date=31 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241231095446/https://www.kodaguexpress.com/post/explained-why-prohibitory-orders-were-imposed-in-kodagu-over-temple-entry-dress-code-row |url-status=live }}</ref>

The local MLAs [[A. S. Ponnanna]] and [[Mantar Gowda]] and the local MP [[Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar]] appealed to the people for peace.<ref name="SOM 29"/><ref name="KE 30"/><ref name="Kodagu Empress 30">{{cite web |title=Kodava Protests Erupt in Kodagu Over Temple Dress Code Dispute |url=https://www.kodaguexpress.com/post/kodava-protests-erupt-in-kodagu-over-temple-dress-code-dispute |website=The Kodagu Express |publisher=Kodagu Express Bureau |access-date=31 December 2024 |language=en |date=30 December 2024 |archive-date=31 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241231095446/https://www.kodaguexpress.com/post/kodava-protests-erupt-in-kodagu-over-temple-dress-code-dispute |url-status=live }}</ref> Police were deployed as Kodavas gathered to protest.<ref name="NIE 28"/>

The Arebhashe Samaja Federation held a meeting to defend the decision to bar those in Kodava attire from the temple.<ref name="TOI 29">{{cite news |title=Restriction around Mrityunjaya temple in Kodagu to maintain peace |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mysuru/restriction-around-mrityunjaya-temple-in-kodagu-to-maintain-peace/articleshow/116774979.cms |access-date=31 December 2024 |work=The Times of India |date=29 December 2024 |archive-date=21 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250121144812/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mysuru/restriction-around-mrityunjaya-temple-in-kodagu-to-maintain-peace/articleshow/116774979.cms |url-status=live }}</ref> The Arebhashe leaders among them, Surtale Somanna, Periyana Dayananda, and Ambekal Naveen Kushalappa, pretended to represent everybody at the temple but actually spoke only for their Samaja from Madikeri town.<ref name="TOI 29"/>

Kodavas protested this discrimination on social media.<ref name="NIE 28"/> The district administration imposed Section 163 of [[Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita|BNSS]] within a 5-km radius of the village temple till 2 January 2025.<ref name="TH 30">{{cite news |title=Row over dress code: Ban orders in Kodagu village |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/row-over-dress-code-ban-orders-in-kodagu-village/article69040404.ece |access-date=31 December 2024 |work=The Hindu |agency=The Hindu Bureau |date=29 December 2024 |language=en-IN |archive-date=30 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241230175400/https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/row-over-dress-code-ban-orders-in-kodagu-village/article69040404.ece |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="TOI 29"/> Many Kodava organisations planned to participate in a procession to Kattemad.<ref name="TOI 29"/>

One report says that there were 100 personnel deployed, including Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) and District Armed Forces within the temple premises, along with police patrols.<ref name="SOM 30"/> Another report stated that around 300 police personnel were deployed around the temple and two KSRP platoons were stationed on the road leading to the temple on the 30th of December, 2024.<ref name="Public TV">{{cite news |title=Heavy police presence at Kattemadu temple after dispute over imposition of dress code - Public TV English |url=https://english.publictv.in/heavy-police-presence-at-kattemadu-temple-after-dispute-over-imposition-of-dress-code/ |access-date=31 December 2024 |date=30 December 2024 |archive-date=31 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241231095447/https://english.publictv.in/heavy-police-presence-at-kattemadu-temple-after-dispute-over-imposition-of-dress-code/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

== Arrests and protests ==
A peaceful vehicle rally was planned from Ponnampet to Kattemad in the morning without roadblocks, but the police prevented it by arresting and engaging the organisers.<ref name="SOM 30"/> Early in the morning of 30 December 2024, members of the Kodava Riders Club and Kodava residents were arrested in Ponnampet as a preventive measure.<ref name="NIE 30">{{cite news |last1=Service |first1=Express News |date=30 December 2024 |title=Kodava-Arebhashe temple committee to arrive on decision over traditional attire by January 6 |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2024/Dec/30/kodava-gowda-temple-committee-to-arrive-on-decision-over-traditional-attire-by-january-6 |access-date=31 December 2024 |work=The New Indian Express |language=en |archive-date=31 December 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241231180548/https://www.newindianexpress.com/states/karnataka/2024/Dec/30/kodava-gowda-temple-committee-to-arrive-on-decision-over-traditional-attire-by-january-6 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Public TV"/> Ponnampet is around 30 kilometres from Kattemad. Among the arrested were three leaders and at least 20 residents who attempted a rally to Kattemad.<ref name="TOI 30"/>The detained Kodava leaders of the peace rally were Ajjikuttira Prithvi Subbaiah, Chammattira Praveen Uthappa and Sannuvanda Darshan Kaverappa.<ref name="Public TV"/>

At least one report claims that hundreds of supporters along with the rally organisers were pre-emptively detained from their houses and villages in Ponnampet taluk and transported in police buses to [[Kushalnagar]] and other areas, deported far away from their native villages to prevent the rally.<ref name="SOM 30"/> According to the police, about 50 people had been detained by the Ponnampet police.<ref name="Public TV"/>

In response to the whimsical detentions, a total bandh was organised in Hudikeri town in the morning and the police were demanded to release all those arrested.<ref name="SOM 30"/> Protests were held by residents in [[Ponnampet]], Hudikeri, [[Gonikoppal|Gonikoppa]], and [[Napoklu]] opposing the arrests that day.<ref name="NIE 30"/> Residents in Ponnampet, Hudikeri, Murnad, and Gonikoppa observed partial shutdowns to protest the restrictions on Kodavas.<ref name="TOI 30"/> Protesters gathered at the Ponnampet Police Station and were seen arguing with the police to release those detained.<ref name="SOM 30"/> As protests erupted across Kodagu district, the Kodava protesters blocked the roads in several locations including Virajpet, Hudikeri, B Shettigeri, Ponnampet, and Napoklu.<ref name="Kodagu Empress 30"/>

The district administration arranged a peace meeting between Kodava and Arebhashe leaders on that evening.<ref name="NIE 30"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Restraint and Mature Leadership - The Need of the Hour |url=https://clnews.in/2025/01/29/restraint-and-mature-leadership-the-need-of-the-hour/ |access-date=30 January 2025 |date=29 January 2025 |archive-date=31 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250131040451/https://clnews.in/2025/01/29/restraint-and-mature-leadership-the-need-of-the-hour/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The arrested Kodavas were later released that day.<ref name="NIE 30"/> The district administration has given 6 January 2025 as the deadline for sorting out the issue.<ref name="TOI 30"/>

Individuals from both communities have been arrested for posting derogatory comments on social media.<ref>{{cite news |title=Two held for posting derogatory content over Kattemadu temple dispute incident in Karnataka |url=https://www.deccanherald.com/india/karnataka/two-held-for-posting-derogatory-content-over-kattemadu-temple-dispute-incident-in-karnataka-3339505 |access-date=6 January 2025 |work=Deccan Herald |language=en}}</ref> The Akhila Kodava Samaja and the Federation of Kodava Samajas met the temple committee and the Arebhashe leaders but no resolution was arrived at.<ref name="SOM 30"/> Meanwhile, the ban orders around the temple was extended until January 7, 2025.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ban orders around Kodagu temple extended until Jan 7 |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mysuru/ban-orders-around-kodagu-temple-extended-until-jan-7/articleshow/116922265.cms |access-date=6 January 2025 |work=The Times of India |date=3 January 2025 |archive-date=6 January 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250106132104/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mysuru/ban-orders-around-kodagu-temple-extended-until-jan-7/articleshow/116922265.cms |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=What is happening in Kattemad in Kodagu: Protests, Arrests, and "Calls for Peace" |url=https://www.kodaguexpress.com/post/what-is-happening-in-kattemad-in-kodagu-protests-arrests-and-calls-for-peace |website=The Kodagu Express |access-date=30 January 2025 |language=en |date=29 January 2025 |archive-date=20 April 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250420073349/https://www.kodaguexpress.com/post/what-is-happening-in-kattemad-in-kodagu-protests-arrests-and-calls-for-peace |url-status=live }}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Kodava people]]
[[Category:2020s in Karnataka]]
[[Category:December 2024 in India]]
[[Category:Hinduism-related controversies]]
[[Category:Controversies in India]]
[[Category:Protests in India]]

Kattemad agitation - Revision history

Wilfred0198 at 01:52, 24 December 2025