Campaign for Local Employment Kicks Off

Pro-Kannada activists have intensified their month-long campaign across Bengaluru, visiting multiple IT parks and private establishments to demand greater employment representation for local candidates. The initiative, spearheaded by the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike (KRV) and led by state president T.A. Narayana Gowda, commenced on November 1 to coincide with Kannada Rajyotsava.

Despite direct appeals from state leadership urging restraint, multiple delegations of KRV members have fanned out across tech hubs in the city, submitting formal memorandums to corporate management. The organisation maintains that companies operating within Karnataka—benefiting from local infrastructure, resources, and human capital—must actively address the employment aspirations of Kannadigas.

Delegation Visits and Corporate Responses

On Monday, several high-profile delegations visited prominent IT and business establishments across Bengaluru. KRV state vice-president Abbigere Vinod led a team to Executive Centre India Limited at Safina Tower on Ali Asker Road. Concurrently, another delegation led by state vice-president Veerabhadra visited Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) in K.R. Puram, while district unit president T.A. Dharmaraj Gowda headed a team to Quality Evaluations on Magadi Road.

Earlier visits included Bagmane Tech Park in C.V. Raman Nagar, where representatives of the tech park reportedly received the memorandum positively. Through these documents, the KRV is seeking detailed workforce demographics, including the total headcount, the proportion of employees from Karnataka, hiring criteria, and three-year recruitment data.

Government Appeal and KRV Stance

The aggressive outreach comes in direct defiance of an appeal issued by Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar, who urged pro-Kannada organizations to refrain from visiting companies directly. Shivakumar emphasized that such labor and employment issues should be resolved through constructive dialogue and within the established legal framework, reiterating his administration's commitment to protecting local interests.

Responding to the government's cautionary stance, KRV leadership clarified that the campaign is designed strictly to gather information, audit recruitment transparency, and address grievances rather than target individual companies. The coalition intends to compile the collected data and present its findings to both the corporate entities and the state government upon the conclusion of the month-long drive.