Lagatar24 Desk
Bengaluru, March 14: Several people were detained by the police after the Congress party and some pro-Kannada organisations staged a protest at the Sheshagirihalli toll plaza in Ramnagar district against the ‘high rate of toll’ levied on motorists using the Mysuru-Bengaluru expressway on Tuesday.
Karnataka | Congress workers detained by
Police at Sheshagirihalli toll plaza in Ramnagar district during the protest pic.twitter.com/iKMumW4NIB— ANI (@ANI) March 14, 2023
As per information, the heavy police force was deployed at the Kaniminike toll plaza following in view of a protest called by the pro-Kannada organisations. Several Congress workers were also protesting at the Sheshagirihalli toll plaza, after which the protestors were detained by the police.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) began toll collection on the Bengaluru-Nidaghatta section of the Expressway on Tuesday morning.
During the protest, a Congress leader alleged that the toll has been levied when even the service road has not been completed, and so they are protesting against this.
“This is a BJP-ruled double-engine government. Despite that, the service road has not been completed. Now, they are collecting tolls from the people. But, we have been protesting that first you should provide the services if you want toll. There is no service, no infrastructure. How will the people travel? They have just opened the toll plaza in wake of the upcoming state elections,” said the Congress leader.
Among the protesters, AP Ranganath, an advocate and former President of the Advocate Association, said that the notification of toll collection was issued only on Monday.
Notably, the toll rate for a single journey on the Bengaluru-Nidaghatta section will range from Rs 135 to Rs 880, depending on the category of the vehicle.
