Karnataka High Court declines to interfere with government’s invitation to Banu Mushtaq to inaugurate Mysuru Dasara this year

The High Court of Karnataka on September 15 declined to interfere with the State Government’s decision to invite writer and activist Banu Mushtaq, whose collection of Kannada short stories translated to English won the internation Booker award 2025, to inaugurate the Mysuru Dasara festival, which begins on September 22.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C.M. Joshi passed the order while dismissing petitions filed by Pratap Simha, a former member of Parliament from Mysuru, Girish Kumar T., Sowmya R. and H.S. Gaurav from Bengaluru.

“We are not persuaded to accept the arguments that an invitation to a person of different faith violate constitutional or legal right,” the bench said while pronouncing the operative portion of the order.

Mr. Simha had questioned the invitation to Ms. Mushtaq primarily due to her alleged anti-Hindu and anti-Kannada comments at a literary event in 2023, and also inviting her without consulting representatives of the Mysuru royal family.

Ms. Mushtaq had made known in her speech at the literary event that the State has kept her away from Kannada by giving the status of goddess to Kannada language, it was argued by Mr. Simha’s advocate while pointing out that her remark makes it clear that she has no faith in worshipping a Hindu Goddess. Mr. Simha has no objection to invite her if she withdraws her anti-Hindu and anti-Kannada statements.

‘How could the State Government invite a person, who has no faith in worshipping a Hindu Goddess, to inaugurate the Dasara festival, which commences by worshipping a goddess as per Hindu rituals’, it was argued on behalf of the petitioners.

On the other hand, State Advocate General Shashi Kiran Shetty pointed out that Mr. Simha, when he was a member of Parliament, had shared stage with poet Nissar Ahmed, who had inaugurated the dasara festival in 2017.

Pointing out that the State Government has already issued a notification stating that no one, irrespective of their caste or religion, should be prevented from entering any temple, whether under Muzrai Department or a private temple, the A-G said that the government is performing its secular duty in organising the Dasara festival in Mysuru.