BENGALURU: In a bid to thwart the strike planned by police personnel on Saturday, the two dismissed policemen who had called for the strike were arrested on Thursday.
In Bengaluru, the Founder President of Akhila Karnataka Police Maha Sangha, Shashidhar Venugopal, was arrested from his house in Yelahanka New
Town, while the Secretary of the forum, Basavaraj Koravar, was arrested in Hubballi. Both have been held for sedition and under various sections of the Karnataka Essential Services Maintenance Act (KESMA).
Mr. Shashidhar's wife accused the police of treating her husband like a 'terrorist' and damaging the mobile phone of her son, who tried to video record the incident. Shashidhar was produced before a court and was remanded to judicial custody till June 16.
Meanwhile, DG & IGP Om Prakash said that the police will not go on mass leave and action has been taken against persons who instigated the police force to go on strike.
“Unscrupulous elements from outside are creating rifts inside police department and are deliberately trying to make the strike a success for their own vested interests. The two accused are self-declared leaders who formed non-recognized organizations, forming sort of core committees, and using various social media platforms instigated the police force to go on mass leave after gaining public sympathy and trying to malign the reputation of the police department,” he said.
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Following these developments and with 24 hours to go for the flash strike, police personnel who were set on going on leave, are considering whether they should withdraw their leave applications.
‘They treated him like a terrorist’
“More than 30 policemen entered our house in the dead of the night and arrested my husband. Though he is fighting for the rights and welfare of policemen, they treated him like a terrorist and took him away,” said Poornima, wife of Shashidhar Venugopal, the Founder President of Akhila Karnataka Police Maha Sangha, who was spearheading the police strike planned on Saturday.
In fact Shashidhar was to address a press conference at 11 am at the Bengaluru Press Club on Thursday. Before that he was arrested by the police from his residence in Yelahanka New Town. Poornima, who spoke to reporters at the same venue, said that her husband was expecting the arrest after the state government invoked ESMA on Wednesday.
“Around 12.30 am, more than 30 policemen entered our house premises by jumping the compound. Some of them were peeping through the windows, while others were banging on the door. I went to enquire and they told they had come looking for Shashidhar. I told them that we would come to the police station in the morning, but one policeman told that he would break the door and enter the house. My husband came and opened the door for them. Though he did not resist, the policemen dragged him out of the house like a terrorist. When our son, Jagruth Shashidhar, tried to videograph the incident, a policeman snatched the phone and smashed it to the ground,” she narrated.
“Again around 2 am some policemen came and said they wanted to search the house. I contacted my husband over phone and informed him. He told me to let the policemen in and let them seize whatever documents they what. After that, the police took away his computer, handbills related to the strike and other documents. They have also taken away the files related to the complaints filed against Home Minister Dr G. Parameshwara, Veerappa Moily and other politicians,” she alleged.
