Rise And Fall Of The Coorg State

Book excerpt: Ever since the merger of the Coorg State with Karnataka in 1956, there has been a blame game in Kodagu as to who were the leaders or leader responsible for the ‘sell-out’. It is not the purpose of this book to engage in any such blame game. Being a journalist, I have tried to analyse objectively the circumstances leading to the merger and its aftermath. My task was made difficult due to the fact that not much of written records were available on the unfolding drama resulting in the merger. As none of the dramatis personae in the drama wrote their memoirs, there have been many grey areas in documenting the developments, culminating in the merger. In the circumstances, I invited C.P. Belliappa, well-known author and son of C.M. Poonacha, the Chief Minister of the erstwhile Coorg State to write a note in this book on the merger issue. I echo the sentiments expressed by Belliappa in his note on the merger which states: “It is for the reader to decide whether there were betrayals, back-room dealings, and opportunistic decisions; or was it all in the larger interest of the newly formed nation. This book was produced with ePustaka - Ink and Weave initiative by Techfiz Inc (hIps://techfiz.com).