Kannada actor Harshika Poonacha and her husband were allegedly attacked by a group in a Bangalore restaurant parking lot in early April for speaking in Kannada, police said.
The city police registered a case on Saturday after Poonacha and her actor husband Bhuwan Ponnanna met Bangalore city police chief B. Dayanada and filed a complaint.
The April 2 assault went viral after Poonacha, who recorded a video of the incident on her phone two weeks later on April 19, shared it on X.
According to Ponnanna, at 7:40 p.m. on April 2, Ponnanna was riding in a car with his wife and two other family members at the parking lot of Karama restaurant in Pulikesh Nagar when he encountered an unknown man. We got into an argument. “A man came out of nowhere and said, ‘Dek ke jao’ (be careful). When I asked him in Kannada to step aside, he said, ‘Yeh Kannada ke… Rog bahat jada baat karten hain (Kannada people speak well),” he shouted. I then asked him if he had a problem speaking Kannada,” he said in his complaint.
Ponnanna said the stranger was soon joined by a group of about 20 to 30 people speaking in Hindu, Urdu and broken Kannada.
Harshika Poonacha went missing after the gang grabbed Bhuvan by the collar, assaulted her in the face and tried to take away her gold chain and mobile phone when she tried to call the police in Rajarajeshwari Nagar. He said it had become.
The couple claimed that even though they approached a police car parked near the mosque and told a police inspector about the incident, the police officer asked them to go to the nearest police station and file a complaint.
“He didn’t even come to the crime scene to see what happened,” Ponnanna told Dayananda.
Harshika Poonacha said the faces of the miscreants were clearly visible in the video. “Do we live in Pakistan or in Afghanistan? If I speak Kannada in Karnataka, what’s the problem? Traveling in our city… Is it that dangerous?” she asked.
Pulakeshi Nagar police have been charged with offenses under Section 427 (Mischief causing damage of more than Rs. 50 rupees), Section 341 (Unlawful restraint) and Section 504 (Intentionally insulting or provoking another person with intent to destroy public peace). ) A case was registered on the basis of or commit another crime), 143 (unlawful assembly), 149 (unlawful assembly with a common purpose), 393 (attempted robbery), 323 (voluntarily causing harm to another).
When asked why there was a delay in filing a police complaint, Poonacha said Ponnanna initially ignored the incident. “However, some well-meaning people of ours have suggested that we lodge a complaint. We have no political agenda but are concerned for the safety of the public,” she added. .
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