Belagavi, Nov 1 (PTI) The Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES) on Sunday observed ‘Black Day’ in Belagavi as an alternative to the Karnataka Rajyotsava celebrations, despite the district administration denying permission for the event, official sources said.
The MES members took out a rally from Sambhaji Garden to Maratha Mandir Kalyana Mantapa here, raising slogans demanding the merger of Belagavi, Khanapur, Bidar, Bhalki, Karwar and Nipani with Maharashtra.
Meanwhile, police detained Kannada activists who allegedly attempted to enter the rally area.
Condemning the MES rally, pro-Kannada activists said the MES had gone ahead with the event despite permission being denied by the district administration and the city police commissionerate. They demanded that action should be taken against those responsible.
Police made elaborate security arrangements at key locations across the city to prevent any untoward incidents.
MES, which has been fighting for the merger of several Marathi speaking areas and villages in the border region of the state with Maharashtra for long, observes Karnataka Rajyotsava as black day every year.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister D K Shivakumar told reporters in Bengaluru that everyone living in the state must respect this land and its laws, stressing that the law applies equally to all.
He appealed to both Kannadigas and Marathi-speaking people not to take the law into their own hands.
Asked about the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES) observing ‘Black Day’ in Belagavi, Shivakumar said, “Kannadigas and Marathi-speaking people should not take the law into their own hands. Everyone living on this land must respect it.” PTI KSU ROH
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