Bengaluru: Twenty-one people were arrested Monday, in connection with communal clashes in Maddur town of Mandya district, some 100 km away from Bengaluru.
The clashes broke out at roughly 8 pm Sunday, when a Ganesha immersion procession that started from Siddhartha Nagar 5th cross was walking past a mosque in Ram Rahim Nagar. Some miscreants pelted stones at the procession, leading to retaliation.
The clashes threatened to boil over, as tensions simmered in Mandya—a district rapidly emerging as one of Karnataka’s communal hotspots.
“When the procession was in front of the mosque, there were some clashes. The police resorted to a light lathi-charge because, when law enforcement officers asked them (protesters) to leave, they did not listen. They crowded the place and tried to create trouble. A total of 21 people have, so far, been arrested,” Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah told reporters Monday.
In 2023, the Congress edged out the JD(S) in the Maddur and Mandya assembly seats, but its wins pushed JD(S) into an alliance with the BJP. In 2024, H.D. Kumaraswamy, as the alliance candidate, won the Mandya Lok Sabha seat. Mandya politics, therefore, has three dimensions now, creating discord.
Following the initial clashes, pro-Hindu groups staged protests in various parts of the district. In Maddur town, the protesters alleged that attacks were targeted at the procession. Currently, a tense atmosphere prevails in Mandya, as pro-Hindu groups are still mobilising to protest against the “provocation”.
In its efforts to contain the situation, the Congress-led state government sent senior police officers from neighbouring districts to Mandya, apart from imposing prohibitory orders on any gathering till Wednesday.
A day after the incident, senior police officer, on the condition of anonymity, told ThePrint, “The situation is totally under control now.”
These clashes hark back to others last year in another part of Mandya. The 2024 clashes erupted in Mandya’s Nagamangala town, some 60 km away from Maddur, after alleged stone-pelting on a Ganesha immersion procession. Later, groups of people set several shops on fire and destroyed properties worth crores.
Over the last year, similar incidents have been reported from across Mandya, also known as ‘Sakkare Naadu’ (sugar city).
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‘No caste. Hindus’
Leaders from the BJP and its affiliated organisations rushed to Maddur Monday, after the clashes. Among them was firebrand BJP leader Prathap Simha, who has often made his presence known in such situations. He addressed a crowd where people sported saffron shawls and cheered the ex-MP.
“We need a Yogi Adityanath,” Simha said, and the crowd responded with raucous applause. His reference was to the extrajudicial demolition of homes of “rioters”, or bulldozer justice. The Uttar Pradesh CM won for a second time, as the people of the northern state are not divided by caste and identify as Hindu, Simha said.
The BJP ecosystem, including Simha, accuse Siddaramaiah and Congress of “appeasement politics”, and Simha Monday again brought the issue up.
“You (Muslims) say that we should not make noise when passing by a mosque, but all you do is scream three times a day that there is no god other than Allah. Don’t we listen to it?” he said, referring to Azaan.
He asked how the stones entered the mosque and insisted that the police should provide security for processions, with the crowd then demanding a DJ, as well.
Speaking about Monday’s clashes, Karnataka Home Affairs Minister G. Parameshwara said, “Reports of small incidents from here and there. A stabbing attempt in one place, where a person had brought a flag. In another incident, children, only three to four years old, stood on the top, spitting, as the Ganpati procession was passing.”
His comments drew sharp reactions from the Opposition.
The BJP has pushed the Hindutva agenda as a poll plank in other parts of the country, but caste is the bigger factor in Karnataka, the exception being the coastal districts. Of late, there have been attempts to emphasise the Hindu identity in Mandya.
In January last year, the Keragodu village in Mandya turned into a fortress as Hindutva groups protested against the state government’s decision to deny them permission to hoist a saffron or religious flag near a bus stand.
The politics of religion has been playing out in the district.
In the run-up to the 2023 assembly elections, the BJP Karnataka unit attempted to prop up two characters dismissed as fictional by historians. Uri Gowda and Nanje Gowda, both Vokkaliga chieftains, killed Tipu Sultan over two centuries ago, the BJP insisted. However, the head of the Adichunchungiri Matha, the Mandya-based spiritual headquarters of the Vokkaliga community, eventually dismissed the theory.
Earlier, in June 2022, Hindutva groups, including the Vishva Hindu Parishad and its affiliate Bajrang Dal, sought permission from the district authorities to gather and chant the Hanuman Chalisa in and around Maddur town. The venue picked was outside the Srirangapatna Jumma Masjid or Masjid-i-Ala, which, Hindutva groups claim, was a temple, later converted forcibly into a mosque by Tipu Sultan.
The politics in Mandya
Called the Vokkaliga heartland, Mandya is one of the sources of strength for the Deve Gowda-led Janata Dal (Secular) or JD(S), and the hub of the farmers’ movement in the state. Political watchers say Vokkaligas are often seen as supporters of former PM H.D. Deve Gowda, but the land-owning agrarian community also backs Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the general elections, which, in turn, shows some of them support Hindutva.
Union minister and Mandya JD(S) MP Kumaraswamy posted on X Monday, “(The) People of Maddur should remain peaceful. Be cautious of evil forces that create hatred and ignite fire to peace. I have given clear instructions to the district administration to arrest the miscreants who threw stones at the Ganapati procession and give them a solid thrashing. Everyone should cooperate in establishing peace. The state @INCKarnataka government is acting in a way that displeases the Hindu community. Everyone should be vigilant about that (sic).”
His statement reflects the caution among JD(S) leaders when it comes to the political issues taken up by its alliance partner, which eyes the region and wishes to secure a full majority in the 2028 assembly elections.
His son, Nikhil, travelled to Maddur Monday and assured people of standing by them while they seek justice.
“The unfortunate thing today was stone pelting against the police…. I am not referring to this (Mandya) incident, but others. They set fire to police stations, but no action is taken. Why?…. It is to appease a community and strengthen its (Congress’s) vote bank,” he said.
Speaking on the Siddaramaiah government, Nikhil earlier said that it withdrew 1,600 cases against the now-banned Popular Front of India (PFI) in a stab at “appeasement”, aligning with the BJP narrative.
He was referring to the Congress government’s decision after Karnataka Home Affairs Minister G. Parameshwara insisted that the party examine an MLA’s request to withdraw “false cases” against “innocent” youths and students. The arrests had been in connection with riots in the city’s DJ Halli-KG Halli, Shivamogga, and Hubballi, among other areas.
After Monday’s incident, the BJP state president, B.Y. Vijayendra, blamed the Congress for forcing Hindus to endure insults and hurting their sentiments.
“(The) chief minister dislikes saffron and will throw away a saffron turban if offered, but during Eid Milad, he happily wore a cap all day,” Vijayendra told reporters in Delhi Monday.
He alleged that the Congress’s anti-Hindu and pro-minority policies had led to the oppression of the majority community in Karnataka.
“Hindus have repeatedly faced insults, creating a situation where they cannot walk with dignity. The state government is filing cases against Hindus. The government is withdrawing cases against anti-social elements, emboldening such forces and traitors who pelted stones at Hindus in Maddur,” he claimed.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
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