53 arrested after Kannada campaign turns violent

Bengaluru police on Thursday night arrested 53 Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) members, including their state president, TA Narayana Gowda, over the vandalism reported on Wednesday in the city.

It may be recalled that during KRV’s protest-cum -campaign on Wednesday on the mandate that business establishments must have 60 per cent of the signage on their name boards in Kannada, non-Kannada boards were targeted and several shops and business establishments were vandalised across the city.

Bengaluru city police chief, B Dayananda told DH that more than 50 people have been arrested till now and they would continue to book the cases.

Dayananda said that they opened criminal cases against the people involved in vandalising the nameboards.

“Apart from 50 cases that have already been booked, we are booking more cases with shopkeepers coming forward to file a complaint against the miscreants. We will track down the people involved and arrest them.”

He underscored that more than 1,000 preventive detentions were made on Wednesday and they were let off in the night. Elaborate arrangements have been made to tackle any untoward incidents, he said.

The Bengaluru city police have also made arrangements to tackle any potential untoward situations in the city. The arrested have been placed in judicial custody for 14 days, according to the police sources.

In Chikkajala police station alone, 28 cases have been opened. The protestors have been booked for blocking National Highway, the other IPC sections invoked are 341 (wrongful restraint), 283 (cause danger, obstruction or injury to any person), 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 427 (mischief mongering), and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty)

A senior official noted that a cop sustained injuries after a protester threw a stone to break a glass sign board but instead, it hit the policeman. The protester has been arrested.