Mumbai/Belagavi: The Shiv Sena today called for Human Rights violation case to be filed against the Karnataka police, for the “inhuman” treatment meted out to those taking part in a Black Day protest rally in Belagavi on Karnataka Rajyotsava Day on November 1.
“Karnataka police and political goons in the state have been terrorising Marathi people staying at the border. Like every other year, the inhuman treatment meted out to those observing Black Day by the police cannot just be condemned. A Human Rights violation case needs to be filed against the police,” the Sena said in an editorial in the party mouthpiece Saamana.
It said that Maharashtra government should take the lead in filing the case.
In a veiled dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Sena said that those vying for an Independent Balochistan do not see the 60-year struggle of the people living at the border of Maharashtra and Karnataka.
“Where is Anna Hazare now ? If he would have fasted for justice to the Marathi speaking people, he would have earned the respect of the martyred,” it said.
It questioned under which law is Karnataka police committing atrocities against those who want to be a part of Maharashtra.
Youths and activists of Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES), a regional outfit in Karnataka, were arrested for taking part in a Black Day protest rally in Belagavi on Karnataka Rajyotsava Day on November 1.
MES leaders have alleged their activists are being beaten and tortured by Karnataka Police. MES observes Black Day on November 1, which is celebrated across Karnataka as Kannada Rajyotsava Day, the day on which the state was formed.
The MES wants 814 villages, where the Marathi-speaking population is dominant, to be integrated with Maharashtra. In its report 50 years ago, the Centre-appointed Mahajan Commission (under former Chief Justice Mehr Chand Mahajan) had recommended that these villages remain in Karnataka.
Maharashtra Government has been fighting the case in the Supreme Court for nearly 12 years to get Belagavi and adjoining areas back from Karnataka.
(Agencies)
