Deve Gowda airs concern over plight of people in Kasaragod, writes to BSY

Bengaluru: Former prime minister and JDS Supremo H D Deve Gowda has flagged concerns over the plight of people of Kasaragod in Kerala, which shares its border with Karnataka, and said people requiring medical aid were denied entry into Mangaluru.

In his letter to Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa on Tuesday, Deve Gowda referred to reports emerging from border regions of Karnataka and Kerala, where people with critical illness were not allowed to enter Mangaluru.

Claiming that some deaths were reported due to the ”apathy,” he asked the government to be sympathetic with the people of Kasaragod, which has a substantial Kannada population. He also raised concerns of fishermen in Mangaluru being unable to fish, sell and transport their catch due to the lockdown and demanded that measures be taken to protect their interest.

Gowda”s letter to the CM comes after Kerala Minister for Water Resources K Krishnankutty wrote to the JDS leader highlighting the plight of people in the region bordering with Karnataka, especially Kasaragod.

Since Karnataka has blocked border roads with Kerala following the COVID-19 outbreak and lockdown, patients depending on Mangaluru for their treatment are finding it extremely difficult to go there.

Seven seriously ill patients from Kasaragod have lost their lives since March 27 after the border roads were shut by Karnataka.