Belagavi: Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy on Saturday met Mahadev, a state-owned transport corporation (NWKRTC) bus conductor who was assaulted by a group allegedly for not conversing in Marathi. Mahadev, who is currently undergoing treatment at a hospital, broke down while narrating the ordeal to the minister. Accompanied by senior transport department officials, Reddy assured the conductor of all possible support. Speaking to reporters later, the minister expressed strong disapproval of the incident and the subsequent developments. “Our conductor was attacked over a trivial issue, but a group of four to five people assaulting him is a serious crime. They should be booked under the Goonda Act. Action must also be taken against those who support such attacks,” he said. Reddy also condemned the blackening of Karnataka state transport buses in Maharashtra and retaliatory acts in Karnataka. “In Chitradurga, some people blackened a Maharashtra bus, and in Maharashtra, our bus was similarly targeted. Due to the ongoing tension, bus services have been suspended, causing inconvenience to the public and loss to the transport department. Such incidents should not happen,” he said. He further slammed the police for booking Mahadev under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. “There were 90 people on that bus. Every day, the KSRTC operates 1.72 lakh trips, and in its 65-year history, such an allegation has never come,” he said, adding the police should have exercised common sense before filing the case. He added that he would take up the matter with the Home Minister. Meanwhile, tensions escalated with two fresh incidents of Karnataka buses being stopped in Maharashtra. In Solapur, a KSRTC bus was intercepted by a group allegedly linked to the Shiv Sena. The miscreants smeared saffron on the driver’s face and forced him to chant ‘Jai Maharashtra.’ In another incident, a Karnataka-registered bus had its nameplate blackened by miscreants.
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