Karnataka border row simmers as Belagavi court summons Maharashtra MP in hate speech case

Amid an escalation in the Karnataka border row, a Belagavi court summoned Shiv Sena Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut in a hate speech case on Thursday, December 1. The court deemed his attendance necessary to answer a charge of offence punishable under IPC Sections 153A (Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) and 505(2). The FIR was filed against him over his speech delivered at a function in Belagavi on March 30, 2018.

Back then, Sanjay Raut said, "If Kannadigas damage one Maharashtra bus, we have the capacity to damage 100 Karnataka buses. We have the courage to do so. In this country, the Kashmir, Cauvery and the Belgaum, Karwar and the border issues have remained unresolved. Despite contesting elections and winning through democratic means, if democracy is throttled, the Shiv Sena supremo stated that there is no other option than mobocracy. In Karnataka, Shiv Sena will fight the Assembly election. But in the border areas, we will stand by the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti."

Reacting to the summons, the Sena MP told the media on Monday, "The court has asked me to remain present in the court on a 2018 speech. This means that I should go to court and there will be an attack on me. This is my information. And I will be arrested there and thrown into prison there."

Maharashtra-Karnataka border row

There has been a longstanding dispute between Maharashtra and Karnataka over the status of predominantly Marathi-speaking regions such as Belagavi. The present controversy emanated from Basavaraj Bommai's assertion on November 22 that his government was seriously considering the resolution passed by some villages in the Jat taluka of Maharashtra's Sangli district to merge with Karnataka. Retorting to this, Devendra Fadnavis said that no village in his state will be ceded to Karnataka. In response, the Karnataka CM dubbed it a 'provocative' remark and staked claim to Kannada-speaking regions of Maharashtra.

Speaking to the media after meeting Karnataka Border and River Formation Commission chairperson and former SC judge Shivaraj Patil on Sunday, Bommai revealed that he will visit Delhi on November 29. During his visit, he shall meet senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi to discuss everything related to the border dispute case pending before the Supreme Court. Meanwhile,  Maharashtra Ministers Chandrakant Patil and Shambhuraje Desai will visit Belagavi on December 3 on the invite of the MES to hold deliberations on this issue.