Bengaluru: The Bommanahalli police arrested a West Bengal native, Mithun Sarkar, on Thursday for allegedly making derogatory remarks against Karnataka and Kannadigas during a heated phone conversation with a delivery executive.
Sarkar, a massage therapist residing on Begur Road, reportedly got into an argument with Ranjith Mathew, a food delivery agent, after insisting that Mathew speak in Hindi instead of Kannada during the delivery coordination call.
According to the FIR, Sarkar allegedly said, “We Hindi-speaking people make up 70% of Karnataka’s population. You people are nothing without us. If we leave, Kannadigas won’t even survive.”
Mathew filed a police complaint, stating that Sarkar’s statements were not only insulting but also provocative and disrespectful to the local language and culture. The Karnataka Rakshana Vedike, a prominent pro-Kannada group, also submitted a petition demanding strict legal action.
Police booked Sarkar under IPC sections related to intentional insult and provocation likely to breach peace. He was tracked using the information provided by the delivery executive and taken into custody shortly after.
Authorities have reiterated that no tolerance will be shown towards those who make divisive or inflammatory remarks that hurt regional sentiments or threaten public harmony.