Kodova and right to bear guns
Posted: Tue Aug 03, 2010 6:35 am
I was reading about book The honest always stand alone, by C. G. Somiah IAS officer ex . It was interesting how an officer intervened to safe guard RKBA ..wish there were more of his ilk around.
I would like if some one could write something about Guns and their worship by Coorgs..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kodagu
http://www.ourkarnataka.com/Articles/st ... luck09.htm
"The Kodavas are a small community and it is estimated that the total population of Kodavas living in Coorg and also outside it, is not more than two lakh. This small number is distributed among 700 - odd family names."
Somiah comes from Kottoli village near Virajpet. Coorgs per se are known for their handsome personality and height. C. G. Somiah himself is a six - footer. They are also known for their honesty, fairness in dealings and courage even under adverse circumstances. Examples of this trait can be found in many places in the book. ....
It was the time when people from Kerala residing in Coorg and also in the neighbouring Kerala were demanding withdrawal of the concession granted to Kodavas under the Indian Arms Act to own guns without a licence.
The provocation for this unexpected demand was a stray incident of communal disharmony in Kodagu following a case of eve - teasing of a Coorg girl by a youth belonging to the Moplah community. This led to violence and arson. In the market area of Virajpet, a wayside temple was also desecrated. During the clashes that followed, two Moplahs died, one of them having suffered gunshot wounds. The situation was soon brought under control but a month later, the Home Ministry at the Centre received a surprise letter from the Chief Minister of Kerala, addressed to the Home Minister. The letter narrated the incident and suggested that the gun culture in Coorg had to be curbed by withdrawing the concession.
Here is what the Home Secretary C.G. Somiah writes in his book: "The Section dealing with the Arms Act was in charge of a Malayali Section Officer and he gleefully supported the proposal with endorsements from senior officers, when the file landed on my desk. In the Arms Act enacted by the British government in India, the Indian Princes and the Kodavas of Coorg owning jamma lands were both exempted from the provision of the Arms Act. Indira Gandhi, while abolishing the payment of Privy Purses to the Princes, also got the concession of exemption under the Arms Act enjoyed by them abolished. This fact was also mentioned in the letter of the Chief Minister of Kerala who wanted the similar exemption granted to Kodavas abolished.
"I recorded an appropriate note in the file explaining the rationale behind this concession granted to Kodavas in the first place and also the fact that possession of a gun [which is worshipped] is as sacred to the Kodava inhabitants of Coorg as it was sacred for a Sikh to possess a Kirpan [sword]. Buta Singh [Home Minister] readily agreed with me and a suitable reply was sent to the Chief Minister of Kerala. The age - old custom and the right of the Kodavas were thus safeguarded."
From Outlook India
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?266450
"Somiah emerges as a deeply spiritual person, proud of his Kodava heritage. There is no pretended conflict of interest when he, as part of the home ministry, rejects the suggestion to ban the Kodava right to possess guns—he compares it with the right of the Sikhs to hold kirpans. Of course, he also wryly notes that the first time his community chose to honour him was when he had the word ‘general’ suffixed to his name as Comptroller and Auditor General of India
!
I would like if some one could write something about Guns and their worship by Coorgs..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kodagu
http://www.ourkarnataka.com/Articles/st ... luck09.htm
"The Kodavas are a small community and it is estimated that the total population of Kodavas living in Coorg and also outside it, is not more than two lakh. This small number is distributed among 700 - odd family names."
Somiah comes from Kottoli village near Virajpet. Coorgs per se are known for their handsome personality and height. C. G. Somiah himself is a six - footer. They are also known for their honesty, fairness in dealings and courage even under adverse circumstances. Examples of this trait can be found in many places in the book. ....
It was the time when people from Kerala residing in Coorg and also in the neighbouring Kerala were demanding withdrawal of the concession granted to Kodavas under the Indian Arms Act to own guns without a licence.
The provocation for this unexpected demand was a stray incident of communal disharmony in Kodagu following a case of eve - teasing of a Coorg girl by a youth belonging to the Moplah community. This led to violence and arson. In the market area of Virajpet, a wayside temple was also desecrated. During the clashes that followed, two Moplahs died, one of them having suffered gunshot wounds. The situation was soon brought under control but a month later, the Home Ministry at the Centre received a surprise letter from the Chief Minister of Kerala, addressed to the Home Minister. The letter narrated the incident and suggested that the gun culture in Coorg had to be curbed by withdrawing the concession.
Here is what the Home Secretary C.G. Somiah writes in his book: "The Section dealing with the Arms Act was in charge of a Malayali Section Officer and he gleefully supported the proposal with endorsements from senior officers, when the file landed on my desk. In the Arms Act enacted by the British government in India, the Indian Princes and the Kodavas of Coorg owning jamma lands were both exempted from the provision of the Arms Act. Indira Gandhi, while abolishing the payment of Privy Purses to the Princes, also got the concession of exemption under the Arms Act enjoyed by them abolished. This fact was also mentioned in the letter of the Chief Minister of Kerala who wanted the similar exemption granted to Kodavas abolished.
"I recorded an appropriate note in the file explaining the rationale behind this concession granted to Kodavas in the first place and also the fact that possession of a gun [which is worshipped] is as sacred to the Kodava inhabitants of Coorg as it was sacred for a Sikh to possess a Kirpan [sword]. Buta Singh [Home Minister] readily agreed with me and a suitable reply was sent to the Chief Minister of Kerala. The age - old custom and the right of the Kodavas were thus safeguarded."
From Outlook India
http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?266450
"Somiah emerges as a deeply spiritual person, proud of his Kodava heritage. There is no pretended conflict of interest when he, as part of the home ministry, rejects the suggestion to ban the Kodava right to possess guns—he compares it with the right of the Sikhs to hold kirpans. Of course, he also wryly notes that the first time his community chose to honour him was when he had the word ‘general’ suffixed to his name as Comptroller and Auditor General of India
!
, what about the rest of us poor turds 
, Do we have to be reborn as Kodavas to be able to get this privilege? Or is there a way to convert into a Kodava, from my current relegion/caste etc. 
)
