Southern States - Karnataka-Bangalore   

Organisations stage protest against Togadia's entry

By Our Staff Reporter

Girish Karnad, playwright, addressing a gathering in Bangalore on Saturday. — Photo: K. Bhagya Prakash

BANGALORE Dec. 6. Several Bangalore-based human rights and civil society organisations today came together to protest against the entry of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad leader, Pravin Togadia, into the State for Sunday's Virat Hindu Samajotsava in Bangalore and the proposed Datta Jayanti celebrations at the Bababudangiri shrine in Chikmagalur.

Among the demonstrators were Girish Karnad, playwright, Arundhati Nag and G.K. Govinda Rao, theatre persons, Ramachandra Sharma and Shivarudrappa, writers, S.G. Vasudev, artist, Gauri Lankesh and B. Suresh, filmmakers, and B.T. Lalita Naik, former Minister.

Women's organisations such as Vimochana, Women in Black, Muslim Mahila Organisation, and All-India Democratic Women's Organisation, and human rights organisations including People's Union for Civil Liberties and Muslim groups participated in the demonstration. Members of leftist organisations including the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) were present.

They held placards which read: "Violence-free homes make for violence-free communities", "Women say no to communal politics", and "One land, one people". Several women were dressed in black to register their protest.

Later, addressing presspersons, Mr. Karnad said it was unfortunate that the Government could not prevent the entry of Mr. Togadia into the State. It was a terrifying situation for a democracy, he observed and called for building up a movement against the threat to democracy. Ms. Arundhathi Nag urged the common man to rise above the communal ideology and expose the political agenda of communal forces.

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