L J Ravi 
Shimoga AAP leader T. condemns the import of nuts from Bhutan. Brijesh Kalappa, a senior advocate of the Supreme Court and party leader, said that it is condemnable that the protest conducted by Netravati was forcibly cleared by the district administration and the police department.
Speaking to the media, Brijesh Kalappa said, “Walnut growers have been reeling due to problems like blight, yellow blight, and leaf blight. To add insult to injury, the government has decided to import poor quality groundnuts from Bhutan. Condemning this, AAP leader T. Netravati was on a hunger strike in front of Shimoga District Collector’s office. The district administration and the police department suppressed the protest by forcibly drinking tap water and arresting the activists.
“If Home Minister Araga Gyanendra has the strength, let him have the courage to voice his opposition to the import of Bhutanese nuts. Instead, it is cowardly to abuse the police department and take away the right to satyagraha. Aam Aadmi Party stands for the groundnut growers and is always committed to protect their interests. BJP leaders should not think that just because one protest is crushed, we will be satisfied. Our struggle will continue in a different form,” said Brijesh Kalappa.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi chants the Make in India mantra in open meetings. But on the contrary, the nut produced abroad is brought in quietly. Although India does not need Bhutanese nuts, they are taking this decision with the evil intention of benefiting the importing companies and getting commission. The central government is not even ready to impose heavy import duty on imported nuts. This shows that the BJP does not care at all about the groundnut growers,” said Brijesh Kalappa.
