Karnataka shutdown over Hogenakkal called off

Pro-Kannada outfits have withdrawn the call for a Karnataka shutdown on April 10 against the Hogenakkal drinking water project in the wake of Tamil Nadu’s decision to put the scheme on hold till a popular Government is installed in Karnataka.

Karnataka Rakshana Vedike, which was spearheading the agitation against the Hogenakkal project, yesterday said that the call for a state-wide shutdown had been withdrawn following Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi’s announcement to put the project on hold.

It may be mentioned here that pro-Kannada organizations under the aegis of Karnataka Border Protection Committee had called for a state-wide shutdown on April 10 after Karunanidhi declared that Tamil Nadu was determined to go ahead with the project.

The controversial project had triggerred widespread protests in Karnataka with pro-Kannada activists attacking film theatres screening Tamil films and stoning vehicles bearing Tamil Nadu registration number plates.

Though the call for Karnataka shutdown on April 10 had been withdrawn, Karnataka Rakshana Vedike activists said they would not allow the screening of Tamil films in Karnataka till the issue is resolved.

Meanwhile, former Karnataka Chief Minister S M Krishna thanked Karunanidhi for his decision to put the project on the hold and helping avert a crisis.

Krishna also appealed to various organizations in Karnataka that had launched an agitation over the project to maintain peace. “Now that Karunanidhi has come out with a statement putting the project on hold, I request all those who agitated against the project to counsel among themselves and maintain peace. No agitation is warranted”, he told reporters.

Krishna sought to clarify that Hogenakkal will not feature as part of the Karnataka Congress party’s election campaign. “It is not going to be an election issue. Certainly people are trying to make it an emotional issue. But, the people of Karnataka have innate wisdom to see through and look at it in the right perspective”, he said.