MYSURU: On the tenth day of their agitation, farmers employed unique modes of protest in Mandya and Mysuru districts to duck prohibitory orders in force on Wednesday.
Leader of Cauvery Hitharakshana Vedike G. Made Gowda, who continued his protest in violation of prohibitory orders, said: “We will not stop our agitation till we get justice. PM Modi must remove the Chief Ministers of TN and Karnataka, else he should resign.”
Meanwhile, JD(S) rebel MLAs N. Cheluvarayaswamy, H.C. Balakrishna, Zameer Ahmed, and Ramesh Bandi Siddegowda joined the protest led by Mr Made Gowda, and later questioned why Union ministers and MPs elected from Karnataka were mute spectators throughout the crisis. “They should either convince the PM to intervene and solve the Cauvery dispute or resign,” they said. Women farmers and sexual minorities also participated in the protest in Mandya. In Srirangapatna, with prohibitory orders in force, three farmers each protested at frequent intervals, while ringing bells.
While security has been beefed up in Mandya, the city has turned into a fortress with paramilitary forces staging street marches at regular intervals. In Mysuru, Tarle Village movie crew involving the Thithi movie fame Century Gowda, Gaddappa, Thannanna, protested in front of the Gandhi statue here. They went away soon after police officers told them about prohibitory orders in force. Besides, a special pooja was offered to Goddess Cauvery by Brahmins’ youth forum at Krishnamurthypuram as a mark of protest. Local residents, however, protested when priests from Baarishi near Solapur in Maharashtra, led by Chaitanya Guruji Kaale, commenced a special pooja near Bagandeswara temple in Bhagamandala, for rain. The local residents objected saying the monsoon had ended in the region and fresh showers would affect crops of coffee and pepper.
