KRISHNAGIRI: Narrating how his family escaped alive when an angry pro-Kannada mob “tried to kill them” by setting the car in which they travelled on fire, a Muslim resident of Dharmapuri district said it was their presence of mind and God’s grace that saved them.
“My entire family including few of my relatives might have been mercilessly charred to death if we had not jumped out of the car when an angry pro-kannada mob set it ablaze,” alleged M. Nawaz Basha, of Palacode, recounting the horrific incident to Deccan Chronicle on Wednesday.
On Sunday (September 11), the 45-year-old Nawaz and nine others including five women and a baby girl had been to Mandaya to visit the 23-year-old Caabsum Banu, wife of 35-year-old Sadiq Basha and younger brother of Nawaz.
They had been to Caabsum Banu’s place after their relatives informed that the woman had delivered a male child in the Mandya government hospital in Karnataka.
Then, Nawaz and others were on the homeward journey on Monday. Around 3 pm that day, the Tamil Nadu registered ‘Tata Sumo’ vehicle in which they travelled was stopped at Etchikerai village, on Mandya-Maddur highway due to traffic jam.
Nawaz, who was in the driver’s seat got out of the vehicle to find what caused the traffic congestion, was shocked to find that an angry pro-kannada mob was setting Tamil Nadu vehicles on fire, protesting against the modified order of the Supreme court to release Cauvery water to the downstream state.
He removed the number plate of the vehicle, but the mob identified them as Tamils and tried to mercilessly kill them by setting the vehicle on fire, alleged Nawaz. However, Nawaz and others jumped out of the burning vehicle and escaped from the place though the mob tried to catch them.
They walked 10 km to reach Mandya, from where they got into the Mysore-Tuticoirn express and reached Palacode safely, he said. “We are living in horror because the incident cannot be forgotten forever,” Nawaz told reporters after petitioning the Dharmapuri collector K. Vivekanandan for help to recover the loss for his damaged vehicle, now parked in Maddur police station of Karnataka.
Interstate buses still off the roads: Meanwhile, In Hosur of Krishnagiri district, interstate transport service was totally stopped for the ninth day since September 6 though curfew has been lifted on Wednesday morning in neighbouring Bengaluru.
The service of the TNSTC (Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation) buses were not extended beyond Zuzuvadi because the Karnataka police asked the transport officials not to allow Tamil Nadu buses to cross the border till the situation is completely normal.
Likewise, few Karnataka state road transport corporation (KSRTC) buses came to the Attibelle bus stand, on the Karnataka side and bordering Hosur of Krishnagiri.
Police sources said that government bus services there were operated with the police protection and will continue till further orders.
