BENGALURU: As many as 29 activists of the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike, including its president Narayana Gowda, have been arrested and remanded to judicial custody for reportedly vandalizing properties during the protest on Wednesday demanding commercial establishments to use Kannada language on signboards. They have been remanded to 14-day judicial custody till January 10.
The activists were produced before the jurisdictional judge at his residence near Devanahalli in the wee hours of Thursday. Following the arrests, there were protests in some parts of the state demanding the immediate release of Gowda along with the other activists. The protestors also threatened to intensify the protests if those arrested were not released immediately. The arrests were about the complaints registered in Devanahalli sub-division police limits.
On Wednesday, KRV activists called protest rallies demanding that business establishments follow the government's direction to have 60% Kannada on signboards. The protest took a violent turn in some parts of the city as the activists resorted to damaging the name boards that were in English. The protestors also warned the business establishments. A few of the detained workers were kept at the Police Driving and Maintenance School in Yelahanka where arguments broke out between them and the police personnel to release them.
After 9 pm on Wednesday, the police released several members but kept Narayana Gowda and his followers in custody. Around 1 am, Gowda and his associates were taken for the mandatory medical checkup at the Yelahanka Government Hospital. Some of the members, who were waiting for the release of Gowda, reportedly pelted stones at the BMTC bus that was ferrying the arrested men to the hospital. A police constable is said to have sustained injuries in the stone pelting.
The accused have been booked for assault or criminal force to deter public servants from the discharge of their duty (IPC 353), disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant (IPC 188) and wrongful restraint (IPC 341) along with other sections of the IPC. Further investigations are on.