Was the August 11 Bengaluru violence a fallout of a power tussle between the local Congress leaders? Did the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) sense a political opportunity to consolidate the minority votes ahead of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) elections due in September?
While the trigger for the violence that broke out on Tuesday night in Pulakeshinagar assembly constituency was the “offensive” Facebook post by the sitting Congress MLA R. Akhanda Srinivasa Murthy's nephew, Naveen, the arson and riots have also been linked to the power tussle in the Congress party.
"The Bengaluru riots was not a communal clash, but a political tussle among the local Congress leaders. The Congress corporators are divided over their support to the Congress MLA. The police will soon issue notice to Sampath Raj (former mayor) as his name has cropped up in the case," said Revenue Minister R. Ashok.
Meanwhile, Kaleem Pasha, husband of Congress corporator Irshad Begum, has been arrested in the rioting case.
In May 2018, Srinivasa Murthy, a JD(S) MLA who crossed over to the Congress, along with six others, including Zameer Ahmed Khan, won the SC reserved constituency a second time, with the support of the then chief minister Siddaramaiah.
Around the same time, Sampath Raj, a two-time councillor from Devara Jeevanahalli ward (that falls under Pulakeshinagar assembly constituency) had become the mayor of Bengaluru, with the backing of senior Congress leaders D.K. Shivakumar and K. J. George. Sampath Raj had contested the assembly elections from CV Raman Nagar and lost.
Locals claim that the rift within the local Congress is due to Sampath Raj eyeing the Pulakeshinagar seat. The constant tiff between the supporters of Srinivasa Murthy and Sampath Raj had landed them in the police station during the recent lockdown too, as they clashed over the distribution of food kits.
On August 11, when a mob torched the MLA's house in Kaval Byrasandra over a Facebook post allegedly posted by the legislator's nephew, it also exposed the political feud between the Congress and the SDPI.
Muzammil Pasha, a SDPI leader, is one of the 206 persons arrested by the police in connection with the violence. Pasha had contested the BBMP bypolls in May 2019, from Sagayapuram (ward no. 60) in Pulakeshinagar assembly segment. But the Congress candidate Palaniammal (sister of deceased corporator Elumalai) had wrested the seat.
According to locals, Muzammil's supporters suspect that Naveen might emerge as a strong contender in the upcoming BBMP elections with his political clout. SDPI workers allege that Naveen works for the BJP, a claim seconded by KPCC chief D.K. Shivakumar as well.
It was Pasha who had came to KG Halli police station on Tuesday evening to file a complaint against Naveen for the derogatory post. However, he was later arrested after the police found that he had addressing a huge mob outside the police station, and was also spotted during the rioting.
Even as both the national parties agree that the violence was a "well planned conspiracy", they are engaged in a blame game.
The BJP government, which arrested 180 SDPI workers following the violence, is soft-pedalling the issue of banning the outfit despite the demand coming from their own party members. The party is blaming the "minority appeasement politics" of the Congress for the emergence of SDPI. In turn, the Congress points out that the BJP is the benefactor of the SDPI's rise as it splits the minority votes.
The Congress, which had withdrawn as many as 175 cases booked against 1,600 PFI and SDPI activists during the Siddaramaiah government in 2015, is treading with caution.
"Both the derogatory post and the violence are condemnable," said Siddaramaiah.
The chorus demanding ban on SDPI is growing, as the political party, founded in 2009, has been linked to several instances of rioting—from Mangaluru anti-CAA riots, Padarayanpura clashes to Pulakeshinagar riots. The SDPI office bearers are among the accused in the murder of at least six RSS workers in the state. They were linked to the attack on Congress MLA Tanveer Sait in Mysuru as well.
Elyas Mohammad Tumbe, state president of SDPI, said "Our members are only accused in all the cases and have not been convicted. The Bengaluru violence is a political game of the RSS/BJP in Pulakeshinagar, a constituency dominated by dalit and minorities. The rift between the local Congress leaders is also responsible for the incident. We demand an impartial probe by a sitting judge of the High Court."
The aggrieved MLA Srinivasa Murthy found little sympathy from his own partymen. On Friday, when he finally chose to register a complaint with the DJ Halli police station, three days after his house was gutted, the political compulsion of his party, and the question of his own political survival were reflected in his complaint as he cited losses worth Rs 3 crore, but restrained from naming any individual or community for the arson and loot.
