Karnataka has seen seven bandhs in five months so far Each time, large parts of the state come to a complete halt, and there is heavy damage to property
Just recently, Karnataka came to a full-stop with the large scale bandh called over the Mahadayi issue.
Now, the state will see a redux on September 9 when it will witness another bandh called by pro-Kannada organisations and other political parties after the Supreme Court directed the state to provide 15,000 cusecs of Cauvery water to the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu.
The Court also suggested that Karnataka adopt a 'live and let live' policy and live peacefully with its neighbour.
Several pro-Kannada organisations led by 'Kannada Okkoota' have called for a bandh for which the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangh also has extended support.
Addressing the media, Vatal Nagaraj, president, Kannada Chalvali Vatal Paksha said: “It is true that this time, the pro-Kannada organisations are calling for bandh for the fourth time, but it is necessary. We don’t have water for our own farmers and in such a situation, how can we share water with Tamil Nadu?”
That apart, pro-Kannada organisations also staged a protest in front of the residence of MB Patil, state minister for water resources. Theatres have stopped screening Tamil films, including Kidaari in the city.
Transport services that ply on the Tamil Nadu-Karnataka route have suspended due to fear of attacks by vandals.
The CM's house, state Secretariat and the city railway station are under tight security cover:
The Karnataka Rakshana Vedike led by Narayana Gowda tried to lay siege on the Vidhana Soudha and the CM's official residence 'Krishna' on Tuesday. The police took the protesters into preventive custody.
“We will splatter blood but will not tolerate the release of Cauvery water especially when our state is in distress,” said Narayan Gowda. Karnataka, meanwhile, has started releasing water to Tamil Nadu from Wednesday.
List of bandhs that Karnataka witnessed in 2016 so far:
April 18: Garment workers took many parts of the state by surprise when their union tried to loot their PF amount in the name of savings. There were violent protests in Bengaluru and Mandya.
May 3: Chikkaballapura, Kolar, Bengaluru Urban and Bengaluru Rural districts protested demanding the implementation of the Yettinahole project
July 25: A transport strike called by various transport corporations forced the government to increase the wages of drivers and other staff by 12.5%.
July 30: North Karnataka regions comprising Hubbali, Dharwad and Belgavi saw violent protests owing to an interim order about the Mahadayi water sharing issue. Bordering States Goa and Maharashtra were benefited by the order.
August 16: ABVP, a right-wing student organisation and an offshoot of RSS called a statewide bandh following alleged anti-national remarks by Amnesty International, an NGO, during an event here in Bengaluru.
September 2: A nationwide bandh called by Left-affiliated trade unions against anti-labour rules of the Central Government impacted transport services in Karnataka.
