Karnataka bandh: Why punish us? Ask stranded commuters

Bengaluru: With buses and cabs keeping off the roads and a handful of autos plying on Saturday due to a bandh, called by pro-Kannada organizations to protest Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal verdict, the commuters had a tough time reaching their destinations. Many had little idea of what Mahadayi dispute was all about.

“This dispute has been going on for a while and this was bound to happen. They should finalise and get over it. It has been raining here so much, maybe the government could also try some rainwater harvesting. Bengaluru has people from all parts of the country as workforce. This is very inconvenient, first the BMTC strike, now this,” said Joshua, a resident of Indiranagar.

Another commuter, Chandran, a daily wage worker, said “I don’t know exactly what the bandh is about. Heard it’s a drinking water issue.”

Tulsi Laxmi, who hails from Kerala and works as a trainer in Kormangala, said “If the organisations want to get Mahadayi water, what is the point of calling bandhs and making us suffer? Auto fares are double today; I have been waiting for a while now. May have to wait till 6 pm till this gets over”

Manjunath, one of the few auto driver who was plying his vehicle, said, “The people are just asking for some drinking water. The fight has been going on for years now. Politicians should solve this matter, or let us live. This is not just a problem for commuters; it is a problem for us to be in the streets as well. What if we get stoned for not taking part in the strike, or face any violence? This is why most of us do not go to work during bandhs,” he said.

Police cars were seen patrolling and stationed in various points in the city.

Protests at KIA

In separate incidents, members of Kannada outfits barged into Kempegowda International Airport and also Nyandahalli metro station early Saturday.

According to the police officials around 25 Kannada Rakshana Vedike activists allegedly barged into Kempegowda International Airport and tried to disrupt services on Saturday early morning.

The protestors allegedly managed to enter the airport around 5 am and came near the passenger counter. “They had nothing to do with Mahadayi verdict and wanted to garner attention. The policemen deployed there swung into action and took them into preventive custody,” said a police official. In another incident around 50 KRV activists managed to gain access inside Nayandanahalli metro station and raised slogans. While many of them were unaware about the issue, a few attempted to gain mileage warned officials against starting services. “The activists were scheduled to begin protest around 10 am, but a group of 50 came around 5 am and began protests,” said a police officer.