Karnataka: Aged Kodagu couple allege harassment, seek euthanasia

MADIKERI: A retired officer from the agriculture department and a resident of Chaudlu village, near Somwarpet, H G Kuttappa, has written to governor Thaawar Chand Gehlot urging him to give permission for euthanasia. Kuttappa alleged that he and his wife have been subjected to severe mental torture by Manjunatha Auto Works, a garage, in Chaudlu village for the past five years, and they have not got help from authorities.
After retiring in 2011, Kuttappa settled at his home in Chaudlu village. In a complaint, Kuttappa said Manjunath Auto Works, which is near his house, is causing severe noise and air pollution in the area. He said the garage staff made death threats to him for raising the issue.
Kuttappa said the garage workers are making a lot of noise from morning till late in the evening by running vehicles and raising it to full throttle. They are also setting fire to the waste generated in the garage near my house and thereby causing air pollution, he added.
Written complaints about this issue have been submitted to Kodagu superintendent of police, Kodagu deputy commissioner, taluk panchayat executive officer, Pollution Control Board, Chaudlu gram panchayat, and then district minister SR Mahesh, but Kuttappa alleges that he has not got justice. The garage is on the Somwarpet-Shanthalli State Highway 85 and it is alleged that vehicles parked on the road are obstructing the movement of other vehicles on the highway.
After these developments, Chaudlu Gram Panchayat decided to vacate the garage and gave three months time in March 2021to move it. However, Manoj, the garage owner, filed a case in the Somwarpet civil court against this order. But the court said the case does not come under their jurisdiction and suggested that it should be resolved within the local jurisdiction.
Kuttappa has also alleged that an officer of Chaudlu GP stopped closing of the garage. He has appealed to the governor for euthanasia through the deputy commissioner.