Mangaluru: The Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) on Tuesday organised a major protest march from Brahmarakootlu to the Mangaluru Deputy Commissioner’s office, demanding the immediate closure and removal of the toll gate on the Mangaluru–Bengaluru National Highway.
The nearly 15-km-long “DC Office Chalo” padayatra witnessed the participation of thousands of SDPI workers and members of the public, who raised slogans against toll collection and demanded that the authorities scrap the toll plaza.
The march was formally launched after SDPI National General Secretary Riyaz Farangipete and National Secretary Alphonso Franco handed over a torch to Mangaluru Rural District President Anwar Sadath Bajathur.
Addressing the protesters, Riyaz Farangipete described the toll collection at Brahmarakootlu as a burden on ordinary people and demanded that the government immediately shut down the toll gate. He accused the authorities of subjecting the public to what he termed “daylight robbery” and warned that SDPI would intensify its agitation if the government failed to act.
Farangipete said that if the demand was not addressed, the party would return directly from the Deputy Commissioner’s office to Brahmarakootlu, mobilise local residents and launch a stronger movement for the removal of the toll plaza.
SDTU state president Athavulla Jokatte said the Brahmarakootlu toll gate had become an additional burden on workers and should be removed. SDTU state secretary Angadi Chandru said the agitation would continue until the toll gate was scrapped and urged the local Member of Parliament to raise the issue on behalf of the people.
At Mangaluru, where protesters opposing the Padil toll gate were also stopped by police barricades, SDPI state secretary Riyaz Kadambu condemned what he described as unauthorised toll collection. He said the protesters had come peacefully to submit a memorandum and demanded that the Deputy Commissioner personally receive it at the protest venue.
Kadambu warned that the agitation would be intensified, including by bringing highway traffic to a standstill, if the authorities failed to respond to the grievances of ordinary people.
SDPI National Secretary Alphonso Franco reiterated that the party would continue its agitation until the alleged illegal toll gate was completely removed.
Anwar Sadath Bajathur, SDPI Mangaluru Rural district president, submitted the memorandum containing the party’s demands to officials who arrived on behalf of the Deputy Commissioner to receive it.
The latest SDPI protest is part of a wider and sustained campaign against the Brahmarakootlu toll plaza. Earlier this year, a broad-based Brahmarakootlu Toll Gate Removal Struggle Committee, involving political parties, farmers’ organisations, labour unions, transport bodies and social activists, had also organised protests demanding the closure of the toll plaza.
Protest leaders have repeatedly questioned the continued collection of toll at Brahmarakootlu, alleging that the plaza has been functioning for around 23 years and that the highway stretch lacks adequate supporting infrastructure such as service roads, flyovers and underpasses. They have also raised concerns over the distance between toll plazas in the region.
In April, former Karnataka minister B. Ramanath Rai led another major protest march from B.C. Road to the Brahmarakootlu toll gate. Activists at the time pointed out that Brahmarakootlu is around 34 km from the Talapady toll plaza, while another toll plaza is located about 45 km away at Hejamadi. They also objected to the proposed Valalu toll plaza, which they said would be located only about 15 km from Brahmarakootlu.
The issue has therefore developed into a larger campaign against what protesters describe as the clustering of toll plazas across Dakshina Kannada. Activists have argued that toll plazas should maintain the prescribed minimum distance and have questioned the establishment of additional plazas at locations such as Valalu and Ganjimath.
The protest movement has drawn support from groups across the political and social spectrum. Earlier demonstrations included representatives of farmers’, labour, Dalit, transport and other organisations, indicating that opposition to the Brahmarakootlu toll gate has expanded beyond a single political party.
During the April protest, a brief tense situation was also reported near the toll plaza after some protesters allegedly attempted to enter the toll area and an argument broke out with toll staff. Police intervened and brought the situation under control, while Karnataka State Reserve Police personnel were deployed to prevent further trouble.
At Tuesday’s SDPI march, besides Riyaz Farangipete, Alphonso Franco and Anwar Sadath Bajathur, SDPI Mangaluru City district president Ashraf Addur, Young Democrats state joint convener Moonish Ali, SDTU Rural district president Philip Henry D’Souza, SDTU City district president Abdul Rahiman Boliyar, SDPI Rural district vice-president Inas Rodrigues, general secretary Siddiq Puttur and several other party and organisational leaders participated.
The protest marks another escalation in the continuing campaign to force the authorities to reconsider toll collection at Brahmarakootlu, with SDPI warning of further agitation if the government does not act on its demand.