Siddaramaiah wrote to Modi on September 9 asking him to convene a meeting of the chief ministers of both states to resolve the vexed issue after the Supreme Court told Karnataka to release 15,000 cusecs of river water to Tamil Nadu on September 5 for 10 days.
Advertisement
Shoot at sight orders have also been issued in these areas which witnessed sporadic incidents of Monday.
Karnataka in particular witnessed severe violence on Monday and protestors indulged in arson which caused the state’s exchequer a loss of almost Rs 25,000 crores.
He said the dispute can only be solved within the legal ambit, adding that breaking the law is not a viable alternative. It is true that violence is not a solution to any problem. “In a democracy, solutions are found through restraint and mutual dialogue”, he said.
Tech companies and multinational firms that downed their shutters in India’s ITcapital on Tuesday have opened their offices and asked employees to return to work.
The violence erupted after the court ordered Karnataka state, where Banglore is based, to release 4.25 million litres of water per second every day from the Cauvery river to neighbouring Tamil Nadu.
One protester was killed overnight after police fired on a mob which was trying to torch a police auto, said TR Suresh, deputy police commissioner for the north of the city.
As the city police bolstered by central forces kept a tight vigil, particularly in areas inhabited by Tamils and other “sensitive” localities, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah made a fresh appeal for peace. There were very few vehicles moving on city roads, with schools and colleges also government offices remaining shut on account of Bakrid today.
The “Rythara hithrakshana samithee”, (committee for protection of farmers’ interests) headed by G. Madegowda, which is spearheading the Cauvery stir, staged a dharna and said they have no other option but to continue their protests till water release to Tamil Nadu stops.
Vehicular traffic on the 150 km Bengaluru-Mysuru highway remains affected as hundreds of angry protesters, including farmers, traders and youths, staged demonstrations at Ramanagaram, Kengeri, Mandya and Srirangapatna against the Supreme Court’s order to release more water to Tamil Nadu for farming when Karnataka has water only for drinking goal in the region. Police gunfire killed one protester and injured another on Monday night.
A police personnel canes a motorcyclist during a curfew following violence in the city due to the Cauvery water sharing dispute with neighbouring state Tamil Nadu, in Bangalore on September 13, 2016.
Advertisement
The minister also appealed to media to exercise restraint while reporting the incidents from the two states.
