Police take farmers on protest march to Linganamakki dam into custody

Minister for School Education Madhu Bangarappa meets the protesters on the march

Sagar Police took the farmers on a protest march to Linganamakki dam to custody near Kargal in Sagar taluk on Friday. Within minutes after Minister for School Education Madhu Bangarappa met the protesters, the police took the protesters into custody and carried them to Sagar Town Police Station in Sagar.

The farmers, who lost their land for the dam projects in the district, have been staging the protest in front of the office of Assistant Commissioner in Sagar since October 21, demanding a grant of land for the families displaced by dam projects. They chose to take out a march to Linganamakki Dam from Sagar on Thursday. As they were about to reach Kargal, Mr. Madhu Bangarappa, who is also Minister in-charge of the district, met them.

The Minister said the government had appointed advocates to represent the farmers’ case in the Supreme Court. Besides that, the State government had already adopted a resolution seeking relaxation of guidelines for granting land to forest dwellers. He also assured them the government would not evict farmers cultivating the government land.

However, the farmers, not convinced by the minister’s assurance, continued their march towards the Linganmakki Dam. As per the initial plan, the farmers were scheduled to stay at Kargal on Friday night and move further towards the dam on Saturday. The police intervened and took them to custody.

The leaders of Raitha Sangha, which was founded by H. Ganapathiyappa, and Malenadu Raitha Horata Samiti are at the forefront of the protest march. They said that they would continue their protest until the demands were fulfilled.

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Published - October 25, 2024 07:54 pm IST