Kannada activists stone Tamil Nadu buses

The agitation against the execution of controversial Hogenakkal drinking water project by Tamil Nadu has taken a violent turn in Karnataka with pro-Kannada activists stoning and damaging buses bearing registration number plates of Tamil Nadu.

Protestors gathered on the Bangalore-Hosur highway stoned eight buses of Tamil Nadu State Express Transport Corporation (TNSETC) while Karnataka Rakshana Vedike activists damaged four vehicles bearing Tamil Nadu registration number plates at Maddur about 80 kms from here.

One of the vehicles targetted by pro-Kannada activists at Maddur included van carrying the crew for the shooting of a Tamil film in Mysore.

In a separate incident, four passengers were injured when protestors smashed the windscreens of a private bus owned by a person of Tamil Nadu origin on the outskirts of Gulbarga.

Pro-Kannada activists also stopped a TNSETC bus on Mysore Road in Bangalore and daubed black paint on the windscreens.

With protestors targeting TNSETC buses, police have heightened security at Kempe Gowda bus stand and the Satellite bus station on Mysore road.

The activists also targetted their ire at the office of a cable television network in Bangalore for continuing to telecast Tamil channels.

When the activists hurtle stones at the office of the cable television network situated on Double Road in a bid to stop it relaying Tamil channels, the police stepped in and stopped the protestors from barging into the office, situated on the third floor of a commercial complex.

The police also resorted to mild caning before taking 50 protestors into custody for attacking the cable television office. They protestors were later let off.

Several activists of pro-Kannada outfits also turned up at the office of a Tamil daily published from Bangalore and asked the staff to stop printing and circulating the newspaper in Karnataka.
Amid heavy police security, a delegation of the protestors was allowed to meet the senior editorial staff, who assured them that the matter will be conveyed to the management.