TUMAKURU: The controversy over the Hemavathi Linking Express Canal project in Tumakuru district has intensified, with protests both in support of and against the ongoing works gaining momentum. It is alleged that CM DK Shivakumar has been diverting the district’s share of water to Bengaluru Rural Lok Sabha constituency which his younger brother DK Suresh had represented in the past.
Demanding that the project works be taken up immediately, farmers in Kunigal staged a dramatic protest by lying down in front of the car of Deputy Chief Minister Dr G Parameshwara, who was on his way to inspect drought-hit areas, on Tuesday.
The DCM was accompanied by Turuvekere JDS MLA MT Krishnappa, who was opposing the project, according to sources. “They were the supporters of MLA HD Ranganath, relative of DK Shivakumar,” sources said.
The DCM assured the protesting farmers that the works would commence soon and managed to pacify them. Farmers across Tumakuru district, except for Kunigal, which falls under Bengaluru Rural LS constituency, have been opposing the project and have been staging protests for months.