Bengaluru: Senior Advocate and active member of the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR), B.T. Venkatesh, along with APCR Vice President and human rights activist Advocate Akhila Vidhyasandra, alleged that the fishermen of Tonka are facing continuous police brutality in connection with the Kasarkod Port dispute. They made these claims during a press conference held in Bengaluru on Thursday.
Fishermen from Kasarkod, including Ganapati Tandel and Renuka Ganapati Tandel, expressed their grievances, stating that the eviction attempts against them are being carried out under police supervision, with the district administration’s approval. They highlighted that decades ago, the Mallukurva village was submerged by the Arabian Sea, after which the government allotted plots in Survey No. 303 to the displaced fishermen. These fishermen received land titles and have been residing there for decades, with Tonka 1 and Tonka 2 villages also having their respective panchayats. However, in recent years, their survey records have mysteriously disappeared.
The government now claims that Survey No. 303 no longer exists, the advocates alleged. Despite possessing legal documents, fishermen have been submitting petitions to the Uttara Kannada district administration for the past four years, but the officials have remained silent. The previous government had allocated the land to a Hyderabad-based company for a mining port, assuring the villagers that it would not affect them. However, in the past few years, the fishermen have faced constant harassment, with authorities threatening eviction. Cases have been registered indiscriminately against men and women alike, forcing them to fight for their survival.
Recently, police entered houses under the pretext of conducting a new survey, enforced Section 144, and arrested protesting fishermen. Uttara Kannada SP Narayan claimed that fishermen in Tonka 1 and Tonka 2 had constructed illegal houses. During the previous elections, Fisheries Minister Mankal Vaidya and Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar had assured fishermen that they would ensure justice if their government came to power. Video evidence of these promises exists. However, despite ongoing police atrocities against fishermen, these leaders have remained silent.
The police have now filed multiple charges under various sections against the fishermen and arrested over 30 individuals, while others have gone into hiding. Advocates argued that these fishermen have lived in the region for centuries and depend entirely on fishing for their livelihood. The government’s actions are destroying their way of life, contradicting its pro-poor stance.
The press conference concluded with demands that all cases against fishermen be withdrawn immediately, the new surveys be halted, the district officials responsible be suspended, and the missing Survey No. 303 records be restored. They also urged the government to provide protection to fishermen and take strict action against police and district officials involved in the alleged atrocities.
APCR General Secretary Mohammed Niyaz and other fishermen community members from Kasarkod were also present.