CH News
Hubballi
On the 11th day of Ganapati idol immersion, several children and senior villagers were injured in a police lathi charge in Narendra village, Dharwad taluk. In response, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi visited the village on Sunday along with the District Superintendent of Police. Addressing the villagers, he condemned the action, stating that the lathi charge was an attempt to oppress the Hindu community without any valid reason during a peaceful Ganapati immersion procession.
Joshi directed the District Superintendent of Police to immediately suspend Rural Station Police Inspector S.S. Kamatagi and the local beat policeman Syed. He pointed out that if any noise had been caused by the DJ, it could have been addressed by restricting the DJ, rather than resorting to violence for trivial reasons.
He strongly criticized the attack, noting that it targeted villagers who had selflessly assisted police and government officials during the Covid pandemic. Joshi inquired about the health of those injured and warned that any future disturbance to the festival, local culture, or Ganapati celebrations would not be tolerated.
The visit was attended by MLA Aravind Bellad, former MLAs Amrita Desai, Ningappa Suthagatti, Shankar Komara Desai, Shankar Shelake, Jayathirtha Katti, Basavaraja Kundagolmath, village elders, Panchayat members, and other dignitaries.