The Karnataka HC on Friday issued notices to the State government and other respondents after self-described farmer activist Sunanda Jayaram filed a petition challenging the State’s decision to conduct ‘Cauvery Aarti’ near the Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS) reservoir.
A division bench of Acting Chief Justice V Kameswar Rao and Justice C M Joshi directed that notices be served, with the respondents instructed to submit their replies within two weeks.
The State Water Resources Department has resolved to organize Cauvery Aarti, modeled on the iconic Ganga Aarti of Varanasi, and sanctioned ₹92.30 crore to develop essential infrastructure for the same, including crowd management, parking facilities, and seating arrangements to accommodate devotees and tourists.
However, Jayaram, who has often been accused of opposing every move that celebrates centuries-old traditions and rich cultural heritage of the nation under the guise of “farmer activism,” contended that the initiative would threaten dam safety, disrupt ecological balance, and harm agricultural lands in the Cauvery basin. Her petition claims the decision is contrary to the Dam Safety Act, 2021, and seeks an immediate stay on the project.
Sunanda Jayaram, a Vokkaliga from Mysuru and President of the Women’s Wing of the Karnataka State Farmers’ Association, has over the years earned a reputation not just as an “activist”, but as a compulsive contrarian who has made a career out of opposing even well-intentioned policies, often targeting age-old cultural practices or infrastructure initiatives, simply to keep herself in the public eye.
Despite the Cauvery Aarti drawing parallels with similar river worship traditions celebrated for centuries across India, Jayaram has chosen to oppose the initiative, painting it as a threat to farmers and the environment. Ironically, while the Aarti promises to boost tourism and generate income for the local economy, including marginalized communities, Jayaram’s opposition reflects a broader pattern where, under the banner of protecting “farmers’ rights,” she has stood against progress that could benefit the very people she claims to represent.
In the past, she led disruptive protests, including the 2012 rail blockade against water release to Tamil Nadu, which critics say did little to solve water-sharing issues but succeeded in creating chaos. Her resistance to development has also been visible during political campaigns, where she dismissed infrastructure initiatives as mere appeasement tactics, while offering no constructive alternatives.
With this latest petition, many see Jayaram’s intervention as yet another attempt to boost tourism with Cauvery Aarti under the familiar garb of activism, an approach that risks depriving the region of cultural rejuvenation and much-needed tourism boost in the name of protecting “farmers’ sentiments.”
The matter will next be heard after the respondents file their affidavits in court.
