DMK treasurer M K Stalin on Tuesday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to convene a meeting of the chief ministers of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka immediately to resolve the Cauvery water dispute.
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Prime Minister Narendra Modi too expressed pain over the attacks in the two states locked in a bitter river water sharing row and appealed for calm while stressing that violence can not provide a solution to any problem.
Indian and foreign companies reopened offices on Wednesday and staff trickled back to work in Bengaluru, after violent protests on Monday over a Supreme Court order on sharing of Cauvery river water. Mobs in Bengaluru set scores of Tamil Nadu registered buses on fire last night.
Tempers have been running high on Karnataka’s streets since a September 5 Supreme Court ruling which ordered the state to release 15,000 cubic feet of water per second per day (cusecs) from its reservoirs to relieve drought-stricken farmers in Tamil Nadu.
This has resulted in widespread disorder in Karnataka which has seen instances of travel and transport services being blocked, buses being burnt and anti-tamil violence leading to the imposition of a curfew in Bangalore – the state’s capital.
“The dispute over sharing of the Cauvery river waters is a long-standing dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu”, it said in a statement. Sporadic protests were witnessed in Mandya, Mysuru, Chitradurga, Ramanagra and other parts yesterday.
Bengaluru city police, bolstered by central forces, is keeping a tight vigil, particularly in areas inhabited by Tamils and other sensitive localities.
Holding that attack on Kannadigas and their properties in Tamil Nadu is “condemnable”, he said, “At this time of difficulty we should not allow anger to take over”.
“We have lifted curfew from all the 16 police station limits in the city’s northwest and southwest suburbs as the situation is under control and normalcy has returned”, Bengaluru Police Commissioner N.S. Megharikh told the media.
Meanwhile one person has died and another received injuries after police opened fire upon protesters in Bengaluru’s Rajgopalnagar area on Monday.
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“It is hard to implement the Supreme Court order, but we will ensure enough drinking water for Bengaluru, Mysuru, Mandya, and other Cauvery basin areas”, he added. “We had sent out 600 invitations but now only 20 members are coming to the wedding”, said Prema, adding, “This is not the right way, both states should understand we are all Indians and we are one India”.
