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ShareBangaloe: Ironically, Valentine’s Day has become a time of high activity for Pramod Mutalik and his ilk. Anticipating heightened killjoy activity around February 14 this year, the state police are gearing up to crush any protests and allow the day to pass peacefully.
Last year, the state police had taken over 500 activists of Mutalik’s Sri Rama Sene into preventive custody across the state ahead of Valentine’s Day; a bulk of the preventive arrests were made in Bangalore. Among those held wereSene president Mutalik, and vice-president Pramod Attavar.
A senior counsel appearing for Sene activists, RD Kulkarni, said that 22 cases were filed against the Sene last year in connection with protests organised around Valentine’s Day celebrations in Mangalore and Udupi districts. He added that the state police were yet to filecharges against most of the activists held last year.
Sene activists have vowed to disrupt celebrations at all costs this year too, but additional director general of police (law and order), AR Infant, said, “We have instructed all district and city police personnel to be alert. Proper security arrangements will be made, and where the perception of a threat is high, Sene activists will be taken into preventive custody.”
Meanwhile, Mutalik, in a recent statement from Belgaum, said that the outfit would prevent any celebrations of Valentine’s Day. Other members of the outfit, however, said that their activities would be confined to staging protests.
