Karnataka: Farmers threaten to disrupt BJP Yatra

Hubballi: Battered by  drought for years, farmers of Nargund have decided to confront state BJP president, B S Yeddyurappa, when he leads his party’s Parivarthana Yatra into the town next week, for his failure to find his promised solution to the Mahadayi river dispute before December 15. The angry farmers plan to  hold a bandh in Navalgund on the issue before barging into the BJP rally in Hubballi on December 21 to register their protest. They have threatened to commit suicide in front of the BJP office and homes of its leaders.

Mr Yeddyurappa had last month promised  farmers of Nargund that he would return to the town in a month after getting Goa to allow Karnataka to execute its Kalasa Banduri project and bring an end to the Mahadayi river dispute between the two states.  But the deadline set by the BJP leader ended on December 15 with no solution in sight , angering the farmers. At the meeting in Nargund on Saturday the farmers decided to wear black badges when Mr Yeddyurappa arrives in the town on December 20 and to  go to  Bengaluru on December 23 to protest  before the office of the BJP there.

“Both Congress and BJP leaders are trying to suppress the Mahadayi movement by inducting the protesters into their parties and offering them several inducements ahead of elections. We are chalking out a strategy against the Yatre as BJP leaders have failed to meet their deadline to resolve the issue. Karnataka will witness another agitation like the farmers’ rebellion of 1980 in Nargund if parties continue to be indifferent to our plight,” said farmer leader Veeresh Sobaradmath.