The residents of villages, who have been opposing the multi-village water supply scheme in Tirthahalli taluk, have decided to boycott the Lok Sabha elections.
They launched the ‘No Vote Campaign’ on Tuesday to garner support from the public for their protest against the scheme, which is being implemented under the Jal Jeevan Mission.
Letter to CEC
The protesters, who have been staging dharna at Heggodu in Tirthahalli taluk since February 26, launched the campaign by signing the self-declaration letters. In the letters, addressed to the Chief Election Commissioner, the protesters said that they have been opposing the anti-people scheme for the last eight months.
The protesters are unhappy with the scant response from politicians and the district administration to their dharna. Instead of continuing their dharna, they chose to boycott the elections and launch a campaign against voting.
The project, intends to supply drinking water from the Bheemeshwara Sangama, where rivers Malathi and Tunga join, to 1,616 habitations at a cost of ₹344 crore. The residents are opposing the project, stating that it was not required as most of the villages in the taluk were located on either bank of the river or at a short distance from the river. They find the project was designed only to benefit politicians.
