Karnataka CM urges Pro-Kannada activists to withdraw state-wide bandh call

Mangalore Today News Network

Bengaluru, Dec 30, 2021: Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has appealed to pro-Kannada organisations not to go ahead with the state-wide bandh called by them on December 31, demanding a complete ban on the activities of the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samithi (MES).

 

 

Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said, "We’ve taken several decisions as per their(Pro-Kannada activists) demands. For instance, strict action was taken against anti-Kannada elements. We are looking into the legal possibilities regarding Maharashtra Ekikaran Samithi (MES). My request to Pro-Kannada activists is let’s not have a bandh. People are just recovering from the effects of the pandemic. Bandh is not the solution for everything. We welcome them to protest in alternate ways. I request them to cancel the bandh."

Several pro-Kannada organisations have called for a day-long state wide bandh on December 31, demanding a complete ban on the activities of Maharashtra Ekikaran Samithi in the state over its repeated involvement in "anti-Karnataka and anti-Kannada activities".

The demand follows the recent incidents of burning of the Kannada flag in Maharashtra’s Kolhapur and defacement of the statue of historical icon Sangolli Rayanna in Belagavi, allegedly by MES activists.

The Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES), a Marathi outfit, has been campaigning for a long time to merge Marathi-speaking regions in Belagavi with Maharashtra.

Asked whether MES can be banned as per law, Bommai said, "We are examining it. I’m not saying it will be banned, I had said the same thing in the assembly as well. We will have to look into it."

To a question if the organsations try to implement the bandh forcefully, he said, " we will take action accordingly, as and when such a situation arise."

However, several organisations like the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC), Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV), Bruhat Bangalore Hotels Association, Auto, schools and colleges associations, shopping malls association and several other commercial establishments have offered only moral support and said they will not participate in the band and function normally.

Business establishments have cited New Year brisk business for not physically supporting the bandh call.

Courtesy:India Today