Cauvery issue: Jai Karnataka stages 'Shava Yathra Protest' in Gulbarga

Gulbarga (Karnataka) [India], Sept. 10 (ANI): Jai Karnataka organisation yesterday staged a protest in state's Gulbarga district against the Supreme Court's order to Karnataka to release water from the Cauvery river to neighboring Tamil Nadu. They staged a 'Shava Yathra Protest' in front of the collector office in the district, wherein they carried on a shava yathra of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his Tamil Nadu counterpart Jayalalithaa and burnt their photos and effigies. "We are staging this protest because we feel that water should not be given to Tamil Nadu. As of now we are staging a small strike so that water of Cauvery River is not sent to Tamil Nadu. We will stage a bigger protest if this water continues to be sent to Tamil Nadu," Mohd Zakir Ahmed, one of the protestors, told ANI. "We believe that not even a single drop of water should be given to Tamil Nadu," he added. According to reports, there was a clash between police and Jai Karnataka activists even as the southern state is witnessing a dawn-to-dusk Karnataka bandh called by pro-Kannada outfits on Friday. Transport services have been hit with government buses staying off the roads while auto-rickshaw and cab unions have extended their support to the bandh. Metro services in the Bengaluru have also been halted. Meanwhile, TB Jaychandra, Karnataka Law Minister, has appealed to the public not to take law and order in their hands and to maintain peace. "We know that the Supreme Court is the highest court in the country. We have to oblige to their orders. My appeal to public is not to resort to agitation and keep calm. They should cooperate with the state government," Jaychandra told ANI. Earlier, the Karnataka Government had decided to abide by the apex court directive to release 15,000 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu for 10 days. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah then told reporters, "As we cannot defy a constitutional body like the Supreme Court, with a heavy heart we have decided to release the water as directed by the apex court." He yesterday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting him to call a meeting of chief ministers of states concerned to resolve the Cauvery water dispute following the Supreme Court's direction to release water from the river to Tamil Nadu. The apex court on Monday, directed the Karnataka government to release 15,000 cusecs of Cauvery water per day to Tamil Nadu for the next 10 days to ameliorate the plight of farmers. The apex court also directed Tamil Nadu to approach the supervisory committee within three days for the release of Cauvery water as per the final order of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal's (CWDT) (ANI)