Karnataka braces for bandh on Mar 22 security tightened statewide
Bengaluru, Mar 21 (PTI): Elaborate security arrangements have been put in place across Karnataka as pro-Kannada groups have called for a 12-hour statewide shutdown on March 22 to protest the alleged assault on a state-run bus conductor in Belagavi last month for not knowing Marathi.
According to officials, police in various districts have deployed home guards along with the City Armed Reserve unit as a precautionary measure to ensure that the bandh is observed peacefully without causing inconvenience to the public.
Senior officers will also be on the ground to oversee security arrangements and prevent any untoward incidents.
Speaking to reporters, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar urged people to maintain peace and abide by the law.
"We will protect the interests of the state. Everyone should maintain peace and follow the law. However, I feel there is no need for a bandh," he said.
According to Bengaluru Deputy Commissioner Jagadeesha G, no holiday has been declared for schools and colleges in the city on Saturday despite the bandh called by pro-Kannada outfits.
However, with transport services likely to be disrupted, the bandh is expected to impact lakhs of SSLC (class 10) students appearing for their exams tomorrow.
State-run transport corporations, KSRTC and BMTC (Bengaluru Metropolitan Transport Corporation), will remain operational.
However, a final decision will be taken tomorrow based on the situation on the ground, a senior transport department official said.
Sources indicate that some auto-rickshaw, cab, and private driver unions have extended their support to the bandh, while hotel associations, malls, bars, and restaurants have only offered "moral support".
Meanwhile, essential services—including pharmacies, hospitals, ambulances, petrol pumps, and metro services—will remain operational despite the bandh.
According to Kannada Okkuta leader and activist Vatal Nagaraj, the statewide bandh is expected to receive widespread support, though there are uncertainties regarding the participation of some organisations.
On February 28, Kannada Okkuta, an umbrella organisation representing various pro-Kannada groups, announced the statewide bandh from 6 am to 6 pm on March 22.
Notably, prominent pro-Kannada groups—including the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike factions led by T A Narayana Gowda and Praveen Shetty—have refrained from participating in the bandh.
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'Ab kya hoga, ye rab jane...': Tharoor takes dig at failed US-Iran talks in Pakistan
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New Delhi (PTI): Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Monday took a swipe at the "failed" US-Iran peace talks in Pakistan with an Urdu couplet, saying only god knows now what will happen.
"Ab kya hoga, ye rab jane; Na woh mane, na ye mane (only god knows what will happen now as both sides did not agree)," Tharoor said on X, tagging a post-talks video clip of US Vice President J D Vance, who led the American delegation at the negotiations in Islamabad.
The United States and Iran failed to reach a peace deal at their historic 21-hour talks in Pakistan, leaving the fate of a tenuous two-week ceasefire in doubt, with both sides attempting to hold each other responsible for the collapse of the negotiations.
अब क्या होगा, ये रब जाने
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) April 13, 2026
ना वो माने, ना ये माने https://t.co/DYrXpa7C8h
Vance said the Iranian side did not accept Washington's terms for ending the war even as the US presented its "final and best offer".
Hours after the talks collapsed, US President Donald Trump said on social media that the negotiations with Tehran failed as "Iran is unwilling to give up its nuclear ambitions".
Trump said the US Navy will actively interdict any vessel in international waters found to have paid tolls to Iran for transiting through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route that handles roughly 20 per cent of global oil and LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas).
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the head of the Iranian negotiation team, said it is for the US to decide whether it can "earn our trust or not".
The Iranian foreign ministry, without elaborating, said the US side resorted to "excessive" and "illegal demands".
The failure to reach an agreement has dimmed the prospect of reopening the Strait of Hormuz to stabilise the global energy marke
