BENGALURU: Language tensions flared up once again in the Silicon City of Bengaluru after activists from the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) publicly tore down and vandalized a Hindi signboard near the prominent BEL Circle in Jalahalli on Tuesday evening. Following the incident, the local police registered a First Information Report (FIR) against the pro-Kannada activists on charges of rioting and damaging public property.

The controversy erupted over a newly installed Hindi signboard on a public road just outside the campus of Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), a central public sector undertaking under the Ministry of Defence. Accusing central government institutions of systematically imposing Hindi in Karnataka, activists belonging to the T.A. Narayana Gowda faction of the KRV gathered near the BEL Circle to stage a massive protest.

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The demonstration turned aggressive when protesters forcefully uprooted the signboard, tore off the Hindi lettering, and struck it with footwear to express their anger. Videos and photos of the act quickly circulated across social media platforms, triggering intense public debate.

Justifying the agitation, KRV State President T.A. Narayana Gowda asserted that the Hindi signboard was installed illegally on Karnataka’s soil without proper authorization. He argued that while central firms could keep Hindi signs inside their premises, displaying them on public roads was unacceptable, reiterating that the organization would strongly resist any attempts at Hindi imposition. He added that the KRV would actively counter similar trends in other major central enterprises in Bengaluru, including BEML, HAL, and ITI. Personnel from the Jalahalli Police Station rushed to the spot to defuse the situation and maintain law and order. A case has been registered against the protesters under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for destroying public property.

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