Tumakuru trucker thrashed in Maharashtra for speaking in Kannada

BELAGAVI: Barely weeks after the Shiv Sena raked up the border dispute, a truck driver from Tumakuru was allegedly thrashed for speaking in Kannada at the Maharashtra border.
Govinda was waylaid late Friday night near the Satara tollgate in Maharashtra by six persons when he was ferrying goods from Ahmedabad to Bengaluru. He fled for safety, leaving behind the vehicle after informing its owner.
Athani DySP Girish, on the instructions of Belagavi SP, went with Govinda when he filed a complaint at Satara police station. Girish said: “Four of the six men were arrested on Saturday evening.”
Posing as policemen, the six men stopped the vehicle. They asked Govinda to get down and demanded to see his documents. He spoke in Kannada while taking out the vehicle documents. “The men shouted at me in Marathi and told me to speak in their language,” he said.
Govinda told them he knew only Kannada. The men insisted he speak in Marathi and started beating him. They tore his shirt and inflicted bruises, Govinda alleged. He ran away and reached Kolhapur.
Ashok Chandaragi, a Kannada activist, said after Govinda contacted him for help, he informed the media and police about the incident.