Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Fishermen in Karnataka's Honnavar claim port firm bought poll bonds, to boycott polls

Hubballi: At least 3,000 members of the fishing community in Uttara Kannada district’s Honnavar are likely to boycott the May 7 Lok Sabha polls, opposing the setting up of a private port at Kasarkod Tonka.

They took this decision after they felt “cheated” by elected representatives from both national parties, who till recently opposed the project citing fishermen’s livelihoods and the ecological impact of the project on Sharavathi’s estuaries, but have now changed their mind. This area is also the nesting site of the critically endangered Olive Ridley Sea Turtles.

According to documents available with the fishermen, GVPR Engineers Ltd has purchased electoral bonds worth Rs 5 crore each favouring the BJP and the Congress. They believe politicians from both parties are now in favour of the project as they have received instructions from their party higher ups. Honnavar Port Pvt Ltd which has taken up the port project is a consortium headed by GVPR. The chairman and MD of GVPR are also the board directors of HPPL.

The data released by the Election Commission of India shows that the company has purchased Rs 10 crore electoral bonds equally divided between Congress and BJP. The company purchased five bonds of Rs 1 crore each in favour of the BJP on October 21, 2023 and five bonds of Rs 1 crore each in favour of Congress on January 10, 2024.

However, HPPL officials denied “purchasing of electoral bonds” to speed up the implementation of the project.

“What is the point in participating in the election if elected representatives, instead of raising our concerns with the government, are conniving with corporate houses to start a project that would displace us from our roots and also affect nature,” said Rajesh Govind Tandel, president of fishermen federation in Honnavar.

He says currently, 2,000 to 3,000 members of the fishing community have decided to boycott the elections.

“On May 2, we have called a meeting of all the fishermen associations’. We will put forward our proposal of boycotting the polls at the meeting. Several organisations have already expressed their support. So the total number of people boycotting the polls can go up,” he says.

Various fisher unions, including traders, boat owners’ associations, dry fishermen traders and others have over 25,000 members registered with them. Community members say if all of the members of the fisher communities in the constituency decide to boycott the election, it could reduce the voting percentage by at least 10% to 12%.

Ganapathi Tandel, another fisherman from Kasarkod Tonka says the community members, cutting across religious lines, are planning to boycott the elections over the illegal arrest of 16 fishermen for opposing a survey on high-tide lines.

“The fishermen were kept in police custody for over a fortnight for opposing the survey. The company wants to displace us from our birth place. The district administration is also not ready to record the presence of houses and fish-drying areas of the locals. This is being done to help the company get our lands for their project,”he says.

‘Haven’t bought bonds’

HPPL executive director Raghavendra Reddy denied that his company had purchased any electoral bonds.

“We have taken permission for the construction of port with Karnataka government and are executing it,” he says and denies any wrongdoing. Repeated attempts to reach out to Minister Mankal Vaidya, who is elected from Bhatkal-Honnavar constituency, and deputy commissioner went in vain.

Bhatkal assistant commissioner Nayana N says the fishermen had earlier too had raised the issue of boycotting the elections. However, the deputy commissioner and other senior officials advised them against it. “There was a mixed reaction in this regard,” she said.

Nayana said officially they have not received any written statement from the fishermen regarding the boycott.

“If we get any official communication from the community, we will try to resolve it,” she said.