An indefinite protest seeking a permanent solution to the elephant menace in Sakleshpur and Alur taluks entered its fifth day at Ballupete in Sakleshpur taluk on Monday. A few protesters carried bottles of poison to convey the message that they would prefer consuming poison to being killed by elephants.
Women, schoolchildren and youngsters have joined the protest in large numbers. Hundreds of farmers stopped vehicles on NH 75 and raised slogans on Monday. They demanded that Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy visit the place and resolve the problem. Videos of a schoolgirl, a student and a woman appealing to the Chief Minister to address the issue have surfaced. The woman is seen saying the CM should put an end to the elephant menace if he “has guts”.
Even as the protest was going on at Ballupete, a herd of elephant was spotted damaging crops at Nedanuru, a nearby village. MLA for Hassan Preetham Gowda met the protesters and extended his support to them. He said the people of the district have supported one family for decades, but had that family decided to resolve the issue, it would have been resolved long ago. “Why don’t they show the commitment they showed to getting highway works sanctioned for the district?” he asked.
Mr. Kumaraswamy has convened a meeting with senior officials to discuss the issue in Bengaluru on Tuesday. The protesters have decided to continue their agitation on the day and decide on the future course of action depending on the outcome of the meeting.