There was tension in Kudchi village on Tuesday after some residents staged a dharna in front of the police station stating that ASHAs were heckled by the family members of suspected COVID-19 patients.
Sangappa Patil, one of the protesters, told the police that some residents had pushed around ASHAs and insulted and abused them, as they were under the wrong impression that they had come to collect NRC documents.
Kudchi police have filed two complaints against 11 persons for disrupting government servants from doing their duty, pushing around ASHAs and anganwadi workers, verbally abusing them, snatching their mobile phones and tearing down the documents they were carrying. Charges have been famed under IPC sections of assault, unlawful assembly, rioting, disobedience of government order and under other provisions. However, other residents denied these allegations. They said that there was an altercation between two persons after a resident accused the community of spreading coronavirus in the country.
Superintendent of Police Lakshman Nimbaragi, who rushed to the spot, told The Hindu that he would collect information from his officers and hold a peace committee meeting in the village, after following due social distancing protocol.
District in-charge Minister Jagadish Shettar said that he would instruct police officials to file a complaint against the accused.
