Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Jan 6: A delegation of Christian religious leaders met Karnataka chief minister B S Yediyurappa, on Sunday January 5 and submitted a petition seeking for permission to install the statue of Jesus Christ at Kapala Betta in Kanakapura taluk, Ramanagara district. It may be recalled that the initiative to install a statue of Jesus Christ, which is said to be tallest in the world, at Kapala Betta has courted controversy with many opposing the project.

Archbishop of Bengaluru, Peter Machado, led a group of religious leaders to the residence of the chief minister. The members of the delegation urged the chief minister to allow the statue of Jesus Christ to come up atop Kapala Betta. Along with the petition, copies of various documents and ownership documents about the land in question were also submitted.

Speaking to media personal later, the Archbishop said that it is wrong to bring politics into the issue of erecting the statue of Jesus Christ at Kapala Betta. "At the said spot, Christian community has been worshipping Jesus since long. The statue is proposed to be built at the same site. Therefore, we have requested the chief minister against opposing the plan," he explained.

He however said he is ignorant about the fact that Hindu deities were being worshipped there in the past. He clarified that the hill is known as 'Kapala Betta' but not 'Kapali Betta' as claimed by a few. "The Christian missionaries in the past would have converted people but we are not converting anyone. It is not easy. We have provided education to about 1.5 ac children. Anyone can show us if we had converted anyone of them. I believe that the chief minister respects all the religions," he stated.

The site in question is located in pasture land located in Nallahalli village. Ramanagara deputy commissioner had recently sanctioned land to Harobele Kapala Betta Development Trust and D K Shivakumar had remitted the price of the land to the government. Shivakumar also had laid the foundation stone for building a 114 feet tall statue of Jesus Christ there, after which it has been mired in controversies. The work on the statue has been suspended and the government plans to look into the whole issue.