Bengaluru: GT World Mall on Magadi Road in the city will be closed for seven days after a farmer from Haveri was denied entry for wearing dhoti, announced Urban Development Minister Bhairathi Suresh in the Assembly on Thursday. The minister intervened during the discussion on the incident and said, ''We would close the mall for one week after a farmer was insulted by not being allowed to enter the mall.''
Assembly Speaker UT Khader, who raised the issue in the Assembly earlier, said that ''when the young man went with his father to the mall, he was refused entry there. The farmer was wearing a traditional Karnataka dress. He is denied entry for the fact that he is wearing a dhoti. I strongly condemn this. The government should take strict action against the mall. Through that message should be sent to all the malls," the Speaker said.
The ruling party MLA Lakshman Savadi said, ''Tough action against the mall would not work. Electricity should be snapped for a week to teach a lesson to the mall's owner. The government should issue an order in this regard and action should be taken against the mall that did not give respect for farmers' attire.''
Ranebennur MLA Prakash Koliwada said, ''He is a farmer of Aremallapur village of my constituency. He has nine children and everyone is educated. One son was doing an MBA in Bengaluru. When he came to see him, his son took him to GT Mall. The mall that insulted the food provider should be closed,'' he demanded.
Opposition leader R Ashok said that ''the issue of insulting farmers has been discussed many times. Now issue an order to take action on behalf of the government for the humiliation of farmers," he said.
Social Welfare Minister Dr HC Mahadevappa said that ''it is not right not to allow farmers to enter the mall. There is no right for the mall owners to insult the farmers. We condemn such behaviour. The government will take appropriate action after receiving the report,'' he said.
Home Minister G Parameshwar's reaction: ''The government has taken seriously the incident of restricted access to malls and clubs. Guidelines have to be brought in this regard in the next few days,'' Home Minister G Parameshwar said. Parameshwar, who spoke at Vidhana Soudha, said, ''It's a colonial mindset. We should respect any dress. Dhoti is our attire in Karnataka and it is also worn in South India in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Everyone should respect that. Such incidents have taken place in some clubs, too, in the past in Bengaluru,'' he pointed out.
What is the incident: On Tuesday around 6 pm, Nagaraj, a native of Haveri, went to GT World Mall with his father to watch a movie. Nagaraj's father was denied entry because he was wearing a dhoti. Despite pleading with security for more than half an hour, they were not allowed to enter the mall. Nagaraj had shared this on social media. After that, there was outrage everywhere for the behaviour of the mall staff. Some organisations also protested. Later, mall staff called farmer Fakirappa and apologised and honoured him.
Following the furore over the incident, a case has been registered against GT World shopping mall's owner and security guard, who denied entry to the farmer, who was wearing a dhoti. An FIR has been registered at KP Agrahara Police Station based on a complaint filed by Dharmaraj Gowda.
Read more: Bengaluru Mall Denies Entry To Dhoti-Clad Farmer; FIR Filed Against Owner, Security Guard
