A gigantic 108 ft, 220 tonnes bronze statue of Nadaprabhu Kempegowda, the founder of the South Indian city. Karnataka Chief Minister announced that a similar statute will be established inside the Vidhana Soudha. 

Also Read: Kumaraswamy predicts possibility of early Assembly polls in Karnataka

Nadaprabhu Hiriya Kempe Gowda, also known as Kempe Gowda was a chieftain under the Vijayanagara empire. He built four towers meant for keeping a check on the corners of the city. He has also gifted the city 1,000 lakes to cater to the needs of people. His name is attributed to the airport, Kempegowda metro station, a museum, bus stand, and many more places in the city. Kempegowda is an iconic personality among the city’s second most dominant Vokkaliga community after the Lingayats. 

“The Kempegowda statue will be an inspiration for all the development works undertaken by the government,” said Bommai to PTI. 

The 108-ft statue will be constructed in a 23-acre heritage park on the premises of the Kempegowda Airport. It has a sword weighing 4,000 kg which came in a special trunk from Delhi. Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa 2019 announced the installation of a bronze statue at the Kempegowda International airport which will cost around 100 crores. 

The announcement was made after a major protest by the Vokkaliga community for targeting its members, D K Shivakumar, V G Siddhartha (deceased) and the former CM HD Kumaraswamy by central agencies. The protest was followed by a plan made by the BJP to poach community leaders of Vokkaliga community leaders as a part to make inroads in the old Mysuru region, which is considered the Vokkaliga stronghold. 

The plan was implemented by the present CM Basavaraja Bommai who mentioned that the statue will be unveiled with the inauguration of Terminal 2 of the airport.