Kashmiri brothers assaulted in Bengaluru for not speaking Kannada; Mehbooba Mufti demands action
JAMMU/BENGALURU: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today demanded strict action against those who allegedly assaulted a Kashmiri student and his brother in Bengaluru last week for not speaking in Kannada, the local language spoken in Karnataka.
According to media reports, a 24-year-old hotel management student from Kashmir and his elder brother were reportedly beaten up and their vehicle damaged by a group of men near a bus stop in north Bengaluru's Sanjay Nagar locality.
The incident happened on the night of December 11, but came to light only yesterday, police said today.
Two persons -- Mahesh and Harish -- have been arrested based on the CCTV footage installed near the bus stop. Both are now out on bail, said Chetan Singh Rathore, deputy commissioner of police (Bengaluru North).
Mahesh is a fashion designer while Harish a driver, the police said.
A friend of the victims, requesting anonymity, said the student, studying in a college here, and his brother were returning home in the early hours of December 11, when one of them stopped the car to answer a phone call.
Around that time, two motorcycle-borne youths reached there and asked them something in Kannada.
The student told them that he did not know Kannada, following which the youth insisted that they speak in Kannada, "When he and his brother objected, the youth called a few more people and started hitting them with stones. They even damaged their car," said the friend.
The two suffered injuries and were treated at a nearby hospital.