Two youths from Pandrahalli, a village in Chitradurga taluk, have been arrested by the Shivamogga police on the charge of vandalising the Mahatma Gandhi statue at Holehonnur, leaving their parents and residents of the village in a state of shock. The family members of the accused and the people condemn the act in strong words, while they believe that the two committed the act under the influence of alcohol. They want illegal liquor shops in the village shifted out.
“Mahatma Gandhi is the father of our nation. Nobody should do what my son has done. I believe he did so under the influence of alcohol,” said P.S. Parameshwarappa, father of Vinay Kumar P.P., 26, one of the accused. Similarly, S. Naganna, father of another accused, Ganesh N., 25, said, “How could we even guess that our children would commit such a crime? If they had confided in us about the incident, we would have made them surrender well before the police could reach the village.” Ganesh was supposed to celebrate his birthday on Friday.
The two left the village on August 20 on the bike that belonged to Ganesh for a ride to Jog in Shivamogga district. On the way, they consumed alcohol and vandalised the statue at Holehonnur in Bhadravati taluk. They returned the next day by 9.30 a.m. By then, the incident had prompted protests in Holehonnur. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah also posted on X, terming it an act of “anti-nationals.” The police tracked them down to Pandrahalli on August 24. They have been remanded in judicial custody. Both have studied diploma courses and worked in the agricultural fields with their parents.
