Srirangapatna: DJ parties with blaring music at the backwaters of KRS Dam seems to be a craze despite the area being a high-security zone and such events are banned. 

Over 29 youths have been arrested by the KRS Police for partying in the backwaters on Independence Day (Sunday) and all of them have been released on station bail. The party was organised at Majjigepura which is in the close vicinity of the Dam and the invitations were circulated through social media by Avinash and Mahalakshmi, residents of Gokulam in Mysuru. Attractive posters announcing the party were designed and the venue was mentioned as the property of one Tejas. 

Accordingly, more than 200 people came to Majjigepura for the party with loud DJ music. Notably, the KRS Police Station is just six kilometres from the party venue and the Police did not even get a whiff of it despite a large attendance. However, Mandya DC S. Aswathi got information about the music extravaganza and asked Srirangapatna Tahsildar to book the violators.

In turn, Tahsildar Shwetha N. Ravindra asked a team of Revenue Officers to visit the spot along with Police. Based on a complaint by Revenue Inspector G. Umesh, KRS Police raided the party venue at 11 pm and arrested 29 persons including the party organisers and dancers. Seven of the arrested were women. Later, all of them were released on station bail.

Police deny knowledge 

On their part, the Police denied that they had knowledge of the party and claimed that they came to know of it only after the Revenue Inspector Umesh filed a complaint.

But villagers of Majjigepura have a different story to narrate. They said that more than 200 vehicles started arriving at the party venue as early as 5 am. “We had informed the Police and have evidence of it. The conversation between the villagers and Police about the party has gone viral. How can the Police deny this,” they asked. 

Public have taken objection to the release of all the arrested on station bail. Such an attitude is not a deterrent. Unless the Police take stricter action, such parties will happen in the future too, said villagers. 

As a case in point, they stated that in the past too, many such late-night parties were organised in the KRS backwaters even when COVID restrictions were in place and such incidents come to light only after the intervention of media and the locals.

Repeated violations by the influential

Even after such incidents are widely reported along with the photos of the crowd, the Police rarely act. Even the Policemen from Mysuru were caught some time back partying for an entire day at the backwaters after erecting shamiyana and hosting music and games. The Police dismissed it as a ‘minor stress-relief party’ and the entire episode was swept under the carpet. 

Mandya Tahsildar case buried?

In the first week of August, Mandya Tahsildar Chandrashekar S. Gali hosted a birthday party for his son at a hotel inside the KRS Dam premises where over 250 people attended, violating COVID-19 norms. After the incident became a major controversy, Srirangapatna Tahsildar issued a show-cause notice to the hotel where the party was held. The notice, however, was not issued to the Mandya Tahsildar. 

Though the Mandya DC had assured the media that action will be taken against Mandya Tahsildar if rules are violated, no one knows if any action has been taken or not. But ask any villager in KRS backwaters, he will say that the case has been buried now and no action whatsoever will be taken.