State Law Minister HK Patil condemns assault on KSRTC conductor

HUBBALLI: State Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister HK Patil has condemned the recent assault on a KSRTC bus conductor in Belagavi, allegedly for not speaking in Marathi.

The minister described the incident, which has sparked outrage, as “unfortunate”.

“It is unfortunate that some incidents like these are happening. They have disturbed the society,” Patil said.

He assured people that the Karnataka government would take all necessary measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents. “The government of Karnataka will make all efforts to ensure that this type of unnecessary event does not take place,” he said.

A bus driver and conductor of the North Western Karnataka Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) were allegedly assaulted by a group of youths following a dispute over language in Belagavi.

According to the officials, the incident happened on Friday at around 12:30 pm near Sulebhavi.Four people were arrested following an attack on a bus driver and conductor in Karnataka’s Belagavi. Police said on Saturday that they received a complaint from the girl’s side also who alleged that the conductor made indecent remarks.

#WATCH | Hubli, Karnataka | A KSRTC bus conductor was beaten up in Belagavi yesterday, allegedly for not speaking in Marathi.

Karnataka Minister HK Patil says, “This incident has disturbed the society. I only want it to be prevented from happening again. The government of… pic.twitter.com/Cdn2UD58ER

— ANI (@ANI) February 23, 2025

A boy and girl who had boarded the semi-urban CBT-Sulebhavi bus had allegedly threatened the conductor as he was not able to speak in Marathi. They called their accomplices.

Karnataka Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy asserted that the police took swift action in the matter.”The police took action and the court has sent the accused to 14 days judicial custody. The law will take action. The police have acted swiftly,” Reddy said.

NA Haris, Congress MLA and Chairman of KSRTC, said the government had taken action in the matter.

“Every local should try to speak in Kannada. If you don’t know it, then you should not be attacking the person who is asking you to do it. That is not fair. The government has taken action, and they have been arrested. We will not spare them as it is not acceptable,” Haris said.

Protests also erupted in the area following the dispute.

Raju Nashipudi, Karnataka Rakshana Vedike District President, Belagavi, said that instead of the conductor “getting justice”, a case has been filed against him under the POCSO Act following a complaint by the girl. (ANI)