Mysuru: Kodagu bandh but event peaceful

Mysuru: Tipu Jayanti celebrations passed off peacefully at the old Council hall in Madikeri, Kodagu,  Saturday morning with the police detaining  211 BJP leaders and members of the VHP, RSS , Bajrang Dal and the Tipu Jayanti Aacharane Virodi Samithi, who tried to protest in different parts of the district despite the prohibitory orders in force.

The protestors were later released. The 30-minute event, which saw around 50 people in attendance,  was  low key in the absence of district minister Sa Ra Mahesh and Congress MLC Veena Achaiah and was inaugurated by  municipal council president Kaveramma Somanna, who  watered a plant and offered a floral benediction to Tipu Sultan’s photograph along with other guests. She, however, refused to speak on the occasion.

But Mr Chatnahalli Mahesh, who was invited to speak on Tipu, lauded his farsightedness in developing Mysuru and for his wars against the British, calling him a symbol of democracy, social justice and secularism.

Two women officers of Kodagu district, Deputy Commissionr P.I. Srividya and  Superintendent of Police Suman D. Pennekar made sure  the celebrations were held peacefully in cooperation with Zilla Panchayat CEO Priya and other officers.

While  BJP MLA K.G. Bopaiah, was detained in Virajpet,  BJP MLC Sunil Subramani and MLA Appachu Ranjan, who wore black shirts as a mark of protest, were taken into custody  at the venue of the event in Madikeri.

Meanwhile, the Kodagu bandh called by  the Tipu Jayanti Aacharane Virodi Samithi was  near total with  private buses owners and the auto drivers' association supporting it.  Most commercial establishments remained closed and a few schools declared a holiday.

At the Omkareswara temple, a shanthi pooja was performed by Hindu activists in memory of RSS leader Devappanda Kuttappa, who was killed in the violence that erupted during the Tipu Jayanti celebrations in 2015.