Karnataka Bandh News Live Updates: Hundreds of protestors detained as precaution during Karnataka bandh; no violence reported

Hundreds of protestors were detained during Friday's Karnataka bandh called by pro-Kannada organisations and farmers' outfits to protest against the release of Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu. The Bengaluru Police detained over 700 agitators who tried to block roads during the day-long shutdown.

Karnataka's uncompromising stand on sharing Cauvery water with lower riparian states does not augur well for amity between states, Tamil Nadu Water Resources Minister Duraimurugan said and remarked that linguistic minorities can live without fear only when cordiality prevailed among the neighbouring states. Also, he termed as 'unwarranted,' the ruckus created by pro-Kannada groups at the press conference of Tamil actor Siddharth in Bengaluru, over the Cauvery issue.

The Karnataka bandh called by 'Kannada Okkoota' to oppose the release of Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu disrupted normal life in Bengaluru and other southern parts of the State on Friday. Authorities had clamped prohibitory orders under section 144 of Criminal Procedure Code in Bengaluru Urban, Mandya, Mysuru, Chamarajanagara, Ramanagara and Hassan districts, and declared holiday for schools and colleges there.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Friday said there was no need for a bandh over Cauvery row as his government is protecting the interests of the state. A Karnataka bandh, called by various pro-Kannada organisations along with farmers' outfits, was observed today to protest the release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu.

The Karnataka Bandh called by pro-Kannada organizations and others made an impact on city bus services of Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC).

Amid ongoing Karnataka bandh over the Cauvery water issue, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Tejasvi Surya on Friday said that Bengaluru will not have drinking water if Cauvery river water is going to Tamil Nadu. The remark comes as Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are locked in a battle over the sharing of water from the Cauvery river, which is a major source of irrigation and drinking water for millions of people in the region.

The Kannada film industry on Friday joined the bandh called to oppose release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu with actors, producers, directors and technicians staging a sit-in demonstration. Actors Shivarajkumar, Darshan, 'Duniya' Vijay and Dhruva Sarja were among those who took part in the protest held near Sri Gururaja Kalyana Mantapa.

Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader TKS Elangovan on Friday alleged ongoing protests in Karnataka against the release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu to be “just political”.

Elangovan said that the Cauvery is not Karnataka’s property, further alleging that the state government is “submitting” to local politics.

"The Karnataka BJP leaders are provoking the government of Karnataka not to release water and because of local politics, the ruling party is also submitting to that. Cauvery is not the property of Karnataka that they should know. Cauvery water wherever it runs, water should be given to every state and particularly to lower riparian states. The strike is just political," Elangovan said.

"The Water situation in Karnataka is extremely grim. The state has suffered a 60% deficit in rainfall this year. The state needs about 106 TMC of water, it has only 50 TMC water... Out of the 34 talukas in the Cauvery basin, 32 are declared a severe drought hit." "Farmers do not have water to support their one-standing crop... In this scenario, releasing additional water to Tamil Nadu will severely compromise the state's drinking water needs. This is a very grim reality that needs to be presented before the Cauvery Water Management Authority... There is no coordination between the CM and the deputy CM... The state government is very casual in its approach...""Karnataka should not suffer injustice because another state is not sharing distress... There is a rainfall deficit here... When you are sharing surplus, you must also come forward to share distress. This is the argument of Karnataka made before the Cauvery water management authority... and I don't find anything unreasonable in the position..."

Former Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy on Friday demanded that the state government release the activists detained during the bandh to protest the release of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu.

"Entire Karnataka is throbbing for the Cauvery struggle. Today's bandh has evoked good response from all quarters," he wrote on 'X' (formerly Twitter).

When it comes to the question of land, language and water, everyone should be united, the former CM said, adding this harmony and unity in the Kannada family should be a wake-up call to the neighbouring states.

"The government should not suppress Kannada sentiments. The activists who have already been detained should be released," he said.

The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) said there were only 59.88 per cent bus operations in southern parts of Karnataka.

The worst-hit KSRTC divisions in terms of operations were Mysuru and Chamarajanagar.

Against the scheduled departure of 447 buses, only seven plied in Mysuru while in Chamarajanagar, eight out of 247 bus services operated.

Mandya, Chikkamagaluru and Bengaluru witnessed 37.25 per cent, 51.49 per cent and 57.39 per cent operations, respectively, against the scheduled departures.

Karnataka minister for home Dr G Parameshwara met Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and briefed him about the situation. Karnataka Police chief Alok Mohan and Bengaluru Police commissioner B Dayanand accompanied home minister Parameshwara and held a discussion with the CM.

- BMTC, KSRTC and Metro were running, with less commuters in them.

- Around 50 pro-Kannada activists were taken into preventive custody when they tried to reach the entrance of Kempegowda International Airport.

- Another five protestors were detained inside the airport. Police said they were standing in the queue at ticket counters and started shouting slogans.

- Heavy police deployment was seen in places like Vidhana Soudha, Town Hall, Freedom park, Railway station, Kempegowda International Airport.

Karnataka bandh received cold response in Vijayanagara district. Bus, auto and cab traffic was as usual. However, there was a slight decrease in the number of passengers at the Hosapete KKRTC bus stand. Elsewhere, hotels and shops were open and traffic was normal.

There was no effect of Karnataka bandh in Ballari. Vehicular traffic returned to normal after police cleared the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike activists who staged a symbolic protest by burning tires on the highway.