When the KDA Chairman becomes a liability: the case for letting Bilimale go

 

KDA cannot be a stage for freelance ideology

Purushottam Bilimale, Chairman of the Kannada Development Authority, has once again demonstrated how temperament and office can be dangerously mismatched. The position he holds demands administrative restraint, cultural sensitivity, and an unwavering focus on strengthening Kannada in government and public life. What Karnataka has instead received is a stream of off-the-cuff remarks that generate noise, not progress.

His latest outburst—that Yakshagana artists are “by nature homosexuals”—is not just factually absurd but socially damaging. It insults practitioners of a cherished art form, trivialises queer identity, and exposes a startling disregard for the dignity of communities the state is obligated to protect. The public reaction, ranging from performers to cultural patrons, has been predictably furious. And rightly so.

But this controversy merely caps a pattern. Since assuming office, Bilimale’s public presence has been defined less by Kannada development initiatives and more by ideological lectures and appearances on political platforms. The KDA, under his stewardship, has little to showcase—no major policy interventions, no sustained pressure on departments to implement Kannada, no visible institutional gains. A role designed for linguistic policy leadership has been reduced to an amplifier for his personal intellectual instincts.

This raises a simple question: How long can the government continue absorbing the collateral damage from a chairman who refuses to conduct himself with institutional discipline?

A state-appointed office is not an extension of a university hall, nor a pulpit for unfiltered commentary. When an official becomes a source of repeated embarrassment, the credibility of the institution is the first casualty. Karnataka deserves an Authority that works for Kannada, not one that headlines weekly controversies.

The path forward is clear. Bilimale should step aside and return to the ecosystem where he thrives—academia, debates, and the free-ranging intellectual space. If he will not, the government must insist. Protecting the dignity of the office is not optional; it is governance.

The Chief Minister must act—before the KDA becomes known less for Kannada development and more for Bilimale’s next avoidable provocation.

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