2 min readBengaluruJul 30, 2026 07:20 PM IST
Protests against the Cauvery Water Regulation Committee’s (CWRC) order for Karnataka to release 3,500 cusecs of water per day to Tamil Nadu for 15 days intensified in Mandya district on Thursday, with the movie Jana Nayagan, starring Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Joseph Vijay, also facing the protesters’ wrath.
Apart from tearing the movie’s posters, the protesters laid siege to Mandya’s Gurushri Theatre, where the movie was being screened. They called off the demonstration only after the theatre agreed to stop the movie screening.
The protests, organised by farmer outfits and supported by pro-Kannada groups, condemned the order to release water at a time when farmers in the state are facing severe hardship due to reduced monsoon rain.
All-party meeting on August 2
Meanwhile, speaking to reporters in New Delhi, Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said that an all-party meeting would be held on Sunday at his official residence to discuss the Cauvery matter. The meeting will also be attended by former chief ministers, MPs and MLAs from the Cauvery basin region.
“Today, we have filed an appeal before the Cauvery Water Management Authority (CWMA), and we will discuss how to take this matter forward in the all-party meeting. We have talked about the issue with Union ministers Pralhad Joshi and V Somanna and MPs Jagadish Shettar and Basavaraj Bommai,” he said.
The legislators the Congress leader mentioned belong to the Opposition BJP.
To a question on Vijay being advised to approach the Union government instead of Karnataka over the dispute, Shivakumar replied, “I will not comment on that matter. We have no interest in fighting with each other. There is a law of the land. We must respect one another. The entire country must work together,” he said.
