Mangaluru: Thousands of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers from across Karnataka descended on Mangaluru on Thursday for a controversial rally, leading to clashes with police following fiery speeches from party leaders.
“Wait four months, there are four people waiting to carry the funeral procession of the Congress,” declared R. Ashok, senior BJP leader and former home minister, to thunderous applause at the ‘Mangalore Chalo’ rally. Shobha Karandlaje echoed the aggressive tone, asserting the party had workers willing to die for it.
The rally, defying prohibitory orders, demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the killings of at least 23 workers from right-wing organizations such as the Rashtriya Swayam Sangha (RSS), Bajrang Dal, and BJP since September 2015. The protest also criticized the state government over the law and order situation, especially in light of the recent murder of anti-Hindutva journalist Gauri Lankesh in Bengaluru.
Civil rights groups in Mangaluru, wary of the region’s tense communal climate, viewed the rally as a potential flashpoint. Mangalore police, under commissioner T.S. Suresh, took preemptive measures by taking several anti-social elements into preventive custody and stopping hundreds of motorcyclists from entering the city to prevent law and order issues.
With the district’s diverse demographic—67% Hindus, 24% Muslims, and over 8% Christians, according to the 2011 census—Mangaluru remains a sensitive area for communal tensions. The 1997 Suratkal riots, which resulted in eight deaths, began after a vigilante group attacked a Muslim man for his alleged involvement with a Hindu girl, highlighting the region’s volatile history.