Codava National Council (CNC) President N.U. Nachappa has called for geo-political autonomy and self-governance for Codavaland, describing them as inherent rights of a distinct community residing in a compact territory within a larger state.
Speaking at the third peaceful CNC human-chain event held at Chettalli, Nachappa said the organisation’s demand was based on the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and what he described as the spirit of the Indian Constitution.
He said the Kodavas were not seeking favours and asserted that Kodavaland’s autonomy was their legal right. He said the demand should not be thwarted by intimidation or threats from the majority community and described such intimidation based on numerical strength as unacceptable.
“While demonstrating our distinct indigenous characteristics, we must ensure that our unique identity is not lost through assimilation into other groups. Our vibrant cultural essence and identity must remain clearly visible,” he said.
“We, the Kodavas, seek a secure space and status under the Constitution to determine our own future within our traditional and integral homeland-situated in a country known for its immense ethnic diversity. This is our natural, birth, fundamental, constitutional and human right. No power on earth can prevent this,” Nachappa said.
He urged that Kodavaland be granted geo-political autonomy and self-governance under the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, citing Darjeeling’s Gorkhaland and the Visakhapatnam-Godavari Hill Tract Agencies as models. He also called for constitutional recognition of the Kodavas as a distinct ethnic community of nature worshippers and stressed the need to protect Kodava land, water, culture, heritage, environment and biodiversity.
Demand for separate enumeration in 2027 Census
Nachappa demanded that Kodavas be recorded and enumerated as a separate ethnic community in the 2027 national Census. He said Kodavas had been recognised as a distinct community in Census records from 1871-72 to 1941, but that this separate identity was subsequently lost.                    The CNC has also demanded inclusion of the Kodava language in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution, implementation of an Inner Line Permit system for the Kodava region, measures to protect traditional Kodava lands, and separate representation in Parliament and State legislatures.
Nachappa called for the preservation of Kodava heritage sites and practices, including Mand (traditional community grounds), Devabane (sacred groves) and the Gun-Thok tradition. He also called for measures to conserve cultural heritage, including efforts to seek UNESCO recognition.
Opposition to land conversion in Kodagu
Nachappa expressed concern over commercial land conversion and large-scale construction of resorts, townships and layouts in Kodagu, saying these developments were affecting the environment, agricultural land, coffee plantations and natural water bodies.He called for strict control over land-use changes and commercial construction to protect the Western Ghats ecosystem and the Cauvery river basin. Referring to the 2018 Kodagu floods and landslides and the 2024 Wayanad tragedy, he said environmental conservation needed to be given priority.
The CNC also alleged that increasing land purchases and commercialisation driven by external capital were affecting Kodagu’s demographic composition, landscape and forest areas, and urged the government to take appropriate measures.
Reference to High Court verdict on ‘Kodava’ nomenclature
In a statement, the CNC referred to the 2021 Karnataka High Court judgment concerning the nomenclature ‘Kodava’. The organisation described the judgment delivered by Justice Krishna S. Dixit in Writ Petition No. 48624/2016 (GM-RES) on December 8, 2021, as a significant development in its campaign concerning the nomenclature.
The CNC said the judgment would serve as a foundation for its demands concerning the distinct identity of Kodavas, separate enumeration in the Census and constitutional safeguards. It also stressed the need to introduce future generations to historical and anthropological works documenting the history, lineage, language and cultural identity of the Kodavas.
Pledge taken
Participants in the human chain took a pledge invoking Guru-Karona, the Sun and Moon, Mother Earth, the Goddess of the Forest, the Goddess of the River Cauvery and the Constitution of India. The event concluded with the national anthem, ‘Jana Gana Mana”.
The gathering was welcomed by Mullanda Rattu Changappa, President of the Chettalli Kodava Samaja, while Noorookkanaad Takka Porimanda Dinamani Poovayya proposed the vote of thanks.
Nachappa announced that the next events in the CNC’s awareness campaign across the Kodava region would be held in Siddapura on October 1 and Cherambane on October 5.
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