Shiv Sena (UBT) workers staging a protest by blackening buses bearing Karnataka number plates in Pune on Sunday.
| Photo Credit: PTI
As the situation on either side of the Karnataka-Maharashtra border remained tense following the assault of a North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) bus conductor on Friday (February 21, 2025) after he asked a passenger to speak in Kannada, Karnataka Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy is set to visit Belagavi on Monday (February 24, 2025) to take stock of the situation with respect to bus services.
It may be noted that bus services across the border have been suspended by both States as part of safety measures soon after the assault.
In this context, Mr. Reddy’s visit has triggered hopes that the bus services may resume on Monday (February 24, 2025) from the Karnataka side. Karnataka transport officials have indicated that the services were expected to resume on Monday (February 24, 2025) if there was no further escalation of tension.
On his part, Mr. Reddy stressed the need for taking action against those who attacked the conductor and those who damaged KSRTC buses. He said that defacing buses in both States serves no purpose and can only escalate tension. He also called for the various linguistic communities to live peacefully and harmoniously.
Meanwhile, the Belagavi police have arrested one more person accused of assaulting the conductor. With the arrest of Mohan Hanchinal of Chikka Balekundri village, the number of those arrested has risen to five, and it also includes a minor.
The injured conductor, Mahadevappa Hukkeri, is still undergoing treatment in Belagavi.
It may be noted that the episode took another turn on Saturday (February 22, 2025), with a counter-case under the provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act being filed against the conductor by some villagers of Chikka Balekundri alleging that he was trying to molest a minor girl on the bus.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Rakshana Vedike president Narayana Gowda is visiting Belagavi district on Tuesday (February 25, 2025) to condemn the attack on the conductor.
Bus services between Karnataka and Maharashtra were stopped after some activists of the Shiv Sena (UBT) damaged KSRTC vehicles in Pune and Kolhapur. Karnataka Rakshana Vedike activists had stopped some Maharashtra buses in Athani and Ramdurg in Belagavi district.
As of now, buses are plying only up to the inter-State border. According to officials, NWKRTC buses may start inter-State operations on Monday (February 24, 2025). It may be noted that Maharashtra Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik has said that Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) buses will not operate till talks are held between the Ministers concerned of both States.
KSRTC buses defaced
Meanwhile, KSRTC buses were defaced in a few areas, including Kolhapur, with slogans in black paint.
Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Sunday (February 23, 2025) pointed out that the Karnataka-Maharashtra border dispute has been pending for long and said: “The Centre should work to expedite the case in the Supreme Court. Former Chief Minister of Maharashtra Vilasrao Deshmukh took the matter to the Supreme Court and now it has been pending for the last 25 years.”
Published – February 24, 2025 05:21 am IST