BENGALURU: A day after the Bengaluru bandh on Tuesday, pro-Kannada organisations are preparing a more intense Karnataka bandh against the release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu, on Friday. The agitators have planned to block all national highways in Karnataka, disrupt train services and lay siege to the Kempegowda International Airport among others.
On Wednesday, various leaders of Kannada Okkoota (Kannada Federation), which has called for the bandh, held a meeting with the office-bearers of the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) and sought their support for the bandh. KFCC president NM Suresh announced total support to the bandh and said all activities related to the film industry - shooting, post-production works, screening of movies, etc. - will be stopped on Friday. He also appealed to star actors to voluntarily take part in the rally organised as part of the bandh.
Meanwhile, cab and autorickshaw drivers’ unions have also extended support to the bandh, while the state-run KSRTC and BMTC employees’ union has not taken any decision. Schools and colleges are likely to decide on announcing a holiday by Thursday evening, after assessing the situation. Industry bodies and hotel associations are also yet to take a call.
Seeking support for the bandh, Kannada activist Vatal Nagaraj went on an open vehicle in the streets of Malleswaram and other areas, appealing to traders to extend their support to the Karnataka bandh. He said over 1,900 organisations have supported the bandh and all NHs in Karnataka will be blocked. “We will close the toll plazas on highways, stop trains and lay siege to the international airport. There will be no malls or cinemas. We will protest peacefully and no medical services will be affected by the bandh,” he said.
Further, he said that a massive rally is planned from Town Hall to Freedom Park at 10.30 am and warned that protests would be intensified if the police detained the agitators. He criticised CM Siddaramaiah for his silence over the Cauvery issue and urged him to stop releasing water to TN.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Home Minister Dr G Parameshwara said although bandhs are not the solution to any problem, people have the right to protest peacefully. “I have instructed the officers to ensure that law and order is not disturbed during the bandh,” he said, while DG & IGP Alok Mohan said security will be beefed up across the state. Meanwhile, around 50 protesters, who tried to block the highway at the Karnataka-TN border near Attibele, were taken into preventive custody.
Exams postponed
Owing to the bandh, Bangalore University has postponed second and fourth semester degree exams, which were scheduled for Friday, to Saturday. Similarly, Tumkur University has postponed the supplementary exams for the first semester of UG courses to October 18 and exams for the second and fourth semesters of PG courses (CBCS-EMS & UUCMS) to October 12.