Mangalore Violence: An Appeal by Karnataka Communal Harmony Forum

Karnataka Komu Souharda Vedike
(Karnataka Communal Harmony Forum)
c/o K.L Ashok, Secretary, Durga Nilaya, 2nd cross, Bapuji Nagar, Shimoga. Ph: 94482 56216. Email: souharda.vedike[at]gmail.com

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Karnataka Komu Souharda Vedike is a coalition of over 200 organizations working since 2002 to establish communal harmony and fight against the agenda of communalism in Karnataka.
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10 October 2006

Appeal for Support
Dear Friends,

The recent spate of communal violence in Mangalore and surrounding areas in the Dakshin Kannad district in Karnataka has left 2 Muslims dead and several hundreds fatally injured. The BJP-JD(S) coalition government took over a week to control the violence.

This is an urgent appeal to all concerned secular voices in India to react and to come to the aid of people terrorized by the communal violence unleashed by the Sangh Parivar forces.

Ananth Kumar, the BJP MP from Karnataka, had declared in 2002 that the Bababudangiri was the Ayodhya of the South. Against the backdrop of the Gujarat riots in 2002, the implicit reference was to transform Karnataka into Gujarat. That today has received a boost in Mangalore and Dakshin Kannad district and is beginning to turn into a horrendous reality. Clear targeting of the Muslim community through physical attacks, looting of their shops, stoning mosques, restaurants and businesses owned by Muslims was in evidence throughout. Though curfew was imposed, the police refused to intervene in several instances, and when they did, Muslims were specifically arrested. The Home Minister of the State, M.P. Prakash, brushed aside the incidents by saying that communal voices exist within the police forces as well and there was little that the Government could do about it.
What adds to the alarm is that the recent spate of violence follows years of communal tension created by the Sangh Parivar in the entire coastal belt. Under the excuse of upholding the ban on cow slaughter, the Sangh Parivar have repeatedly taken the law into their hands over the years. They have attacked Muslims, stripped them, paraded them naked, beaten them up, harassed women and looted their shops - all in the name of religion. Despite this history of communal tension that existed in the district, the Police and the State Government have not taken any serious action. Though cases have been filed in police stations, hardly any have resulted in the convictions of the accused persons further endorsing the communal nature of the police.

The immediate provocation for last week's violence was the assault by Bajrang Dal members' of five people who were transporting cattle to a slaughter house. The Sangh Parivar immediately announced a bandh the next day when the actual rioting began. The fact that such violent bandhs are announced and enforced in our democratic and secular India is astonishing. This week also saw retaliation by Muslims against the Sangh Parivar forces. The communal clashes that took place could havealore been avoided had the Police acted on time.

Over the last few years, Sangh Parivar has attempted to destroy the secular fabric in Karnataka by targeting the Baba-Datta shrine on Bababudangiri near Chikmagalur. An example of syncretic traditions in the state, the shrine attracts people of different faiths seeking their God in a common shrine. Baba-Datta shrine is a unique and glorious symbol of secularism and tolerance.

The Sangh Parivar has been targeting the cave shrine on Bababudangiri with the sole intention of destroying this tradition in the name of 'liberating' the shrine from Muslims. In order to achieve their narrow sectarian goal, they have been creating unwanted disputes, putting up historically untenable and legally unsubstantial arguments. To prove their point that the shrine once belonged only to Hindus, they have introduced previously non-existent religious practices like Datta-Male, Shobha Yatre and Datta Jayanthi every year in the months of October, November and December. It is obvious that their main purpose is neither religion nor faith but to target the Muslim community as 'outsiders' who are bent on destroying the 'Hindu' tradition and culture.

Karnataka Komu Souharda Vedike has consistently thwarted the intentions of the Sangh Parivar, countering their agenda and exposing their farcical claims about the shrine.

It appears now as if the Sangh Parivar is seeking fresh grounds to implement their ideology of hatred. With the BJP in the government as a coalition partner, the need for action becomes even more urgent.


We request you all to:

write to the President to intervene and advise the Central Government to take necessary action against a State government which remains a mute spectator to the communal clashes, silently supporting the Hindu right wing forces in Mangalore.

write to the Prime Minister to remind him as the leader of the country and in the event of failure of the State Government to maintain law and order, it is his duty to accord protection to all sections of society.

Karnataka Komu Souharda Vedike calls for:

A ban on the Hindu right-wing organizations such as Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal and other for continually provocating communal violence and disturbing the law and order of the society.

A judicial inquiry into the riots to look into and take cognizance of the violence that has left 2 people dead and injured several others. This is the only way we can ensure that the victims are assured justice.

Adequate compensation to be provided to all the victims of the communal violence in the districts immediately.