'They did not allow me near my father'

By Our Staff Reporter

BANGALORE, OCT. 9. ``They were worse than animals, they did not allow me to even go near my father who was lying in a pool of blood. When I tried to go near him, they hit me on my head with their lathis,'' said Mr. Kantharaj, 22-year-old son of Mr. Puttananjegowda who died in police firing in Vitlenahalli in Channapatna taluk today.

He told The Hindu that his father was shot while he was returning to the village from a nearby field. On learning that his father had been shot, Mr. Kantharaj, tried to go to the area, but the police did not allow him to do so. ``I do not how many, but many policemen hit me on my head,'' Mr. Kantharaj, whose head was covered with a bandage, said with tears rolling down. He was being taken care of in a friend's house. Mr. Kantharaj is one of the three sons of Mr. Puttananjegowda from his first wife. His mother passed away over a decade ago.

In the house of the deceased farmer, many women were seen weeping inconsolably. Ms. Bhadramma, the second wife of Mr. Puttananjegowda, could hardly speak. Her neighbours told The Hindu that with the death of her husband, she faced an uncertain future, as did her daughter Sangeetha (12). ``Who will take care of her now?'' they wondered.

Mr. Kempegowda of Allalasandra village, father of Ms. Bhadramma, said he did not know what would befall his daughter next. When asked whether he would take her to his village, he said, ``I am a poor man. I do not know what to do. It all depends on what the people of this village decide,'' he said.

The villagers feared that the other victim of police firing, Mr. Thammayya, had also died. But he is being treated at the Victoria Hospital here. The members of his family, who were crying, seemed to be under the impression that he was dead.

Dozens of villagers showed the minor injuries suffered by them during the lathicharge.

The villagers minced no words in criticising the police action against neera tappers during the early hours of today. Ms. Nagamma, a neighbour of the deceased farmer, asked, ``What on earth justifies the police behaviour? Is it proper for them to enter houses at 3 a.m. in the morning?''

While some of the villagers blamed the local legislator, Mr. D.K. Shivakumar, who is the Cooperation Minister, for the events that unfolded in village, their ire was mainly against the State Government.

A police van caught in the slush and a private vehicle, a Tata Sumo, which had turned turtle, stood as mute witnesses to the terror unleashed on the people of the village. While there was no police presence in the village, the villagers said the policemen had left after the lathicharge and firing. The people, who entered the KSRP van stuck in the slush, pointed out that the policemen had left behind their guns, coats, playing cards and chilli-powder. They alleged that the police had brought the chilli-powder to throw into their eyes if the situation warranted it.

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Section  : Southern States
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