Belgaum: As the government machinery gears up to maintain law and order during the `Karnataka bandh' called by the Border Agitation Committee led by Kannada leader Vatal Nagaraj on Wednesday, there is anxiety among people of Belgaum.

The bandh is to oppose the Union Government's submission and subsequent withdrawal of affidavit on the border dispute between Karnataka and Maharashtra, in the Supreme Court.

Mixed reaction

The bandh call is not welcomed by all here. Sources said the Government was with Kannada organisations and police was also ready to cooperate. Therefore, the bandh could be near total, at least in areas dominated by Kannada-speaking people in the city.

Maharashtra Ekikaran Samithi working president, Belgaum city, Deepak Dalvi said: "Everybody knows it is a `Government-sponsored' bandh. The MES and Marathi-speaking people in border areas have "ignored" the bandh call but will still observe a "holiday" to avoid any kind of confrontation as the people of Belgaum are peace-loving."

He said people had witnessed the "flop show" and the "mammoth" gathering of Marathi-speaking people against the Government on the first day of legislature session in Belgaum last week. It was unfortunate that the Government was trying to divide people of Belgaum and border areas on linguistic lines.

The Government should realise that there were no differences between Kannada and Marathi-speaking people in Belgaum or elsewhere. The MES was only fighting with the Centre to protect its geographical and cultural rights, which were denied during the Reorganisation of States, he said.

Buses to be off roads

Kannada organisations here say they want to ensure total bandh in Belgaum city and were not bothered about the response in other taluks of the district as there was no Kannada leadership to take the responsibility in those areas. City bus services, inter-district and inter-State bus services and autorickshaws would be affected. Establishments owned by Marathi-speaking people may also remain closed.

Under the aegis of Belgaum District Kannada Organisation Action Committee, a protest rally would be taken out from Rani Chennamma Circle at 11 a.m.

Action committee president Ashok Chandargi said the Kannada organisation was opposed to Centre's ploy to "re-open" the border dispute. That the Union Government was trying to re-open the border row was inherent in the statement of Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram that the Centre would take a "neutral" stand before the Supreme Court in response to Maharashtra's petition, he said.

The question of taking a neutral stand should not arise since it was the Centre which had appointed the Mahajan Commission at the behest of Maharashtra, he said.

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