Tamil Nadu police arrest Kannada Jagriti Vedike Chief, 50 others after pro-Mekedatu protest allgedly disrupts traffic

Krishnagiri (Tamil Nadu) [India], August 13 (ANI): The Tamil Nadu police on Thursday arrested Manjunath Deva, president of the Kannada Jagriti Vedike, along with 50 others for allegedly disrupting traffic by conducting a sit-in protest agaisnt the State government’s opposition to Karnataka’s proposal for the construction of Mekedatu Dam.

Although normal traffic between the two states was operating this morning, more than 50 members of Kannada organisations, led by Manjunath Deva, president of the Kannada Jagriti Vedike, gathered near the Karnataka entry point at the Tamil Nadu-Karnataka border and suddenly launched a protest.

Following the arrival of the Kannada activists and their protest, all buses as well as heavy and light vehicles were immediately stopped at the Jujuwadi area on the Tamil Nadu side as a precautionary measure to prevent any untoward incidents.

As a result, Tamil Nadu passengers travelling to Bengaluru and other major parts of Karnataka faced severe inconvenience. Since vehicles were unable to cross the border, passengers were forced to walk from the Jujuwadi border into Karnataka and find alternative vehicles.

Meanwhile, police arrested Manjunath Deva and more than 50 members of the Kannada organisations who staged a sit-in on the road, disrupting traffic. After they were removed from the area, the situation at the border returned to normal.

Traffic between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka has now been fully restored, and buses and other vehicles have resumed their regular operations through the Jujuwadi border.

The Cauvery water dispute is a long-running inter-state river water-sharing conflict with Karnataka and Tamil Nadu being the principal parties. The dispute revolves around how the waters of the Cauvery River should be shared, particularly during years of low rainfall.

The Mekedatu balancing reservoir project, proposed by Karnataka, has been a major point of friction between the two states, with Tamil Nadu traditionally opposing it on the grounds that it would affect the flow of water downstream. (ANI)