<p>The murder of a Bajrang Dal activist, Harsha, in Shivamogga on Sunday deserves to be strongly condemned. But even more deplorable is the ruling BJP’s bid to use it to incite large-scale violence, due to which the entire district suffered on Monday. Even before the police complete their investigations, BJP leaders portrayed the murder as a communal crime, with minister K S Eshwarappa, who hails from the district, making provocative statements against Muslims. Police have found that Harsha himself was an ‘anti-social element’ who was involved in at least five cases of assault and attempt to murder, including attacks on members of the Muslim community, and have therefore not ruled out motives other than an immediate communal trigger for the murder.</p>.<p>The BJP appears to have perfected a ‘toolkit’ on how to arouse communal passions and benefit from them whenever a major election is being held in the country. The party is clearly also preparing the ground for the 2023 Assembly elections in Karnataka by raising communal issues and hoping to benefit from polarisation. Harsha’s body was kept in state for public viewing and over 1,000 people participated in the funeral procession although Section 144 was in force in the area at the time. This was reminiscent of the deliberate parading of the bodies of Godhra victims in Ahmedabad in 2002 that incited the subsequent large-scale communal carnage. It is unfortunate that police officers in Shivamogga did not act with a sense of responsibility and did not stop the procession, knowing full well its consequences. Police are expected to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law, not take decisions and actions that suit their political masters. Eshwarappa’s position in the ministry is untenable after his role in provoking violence.</p>.<p>Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, who tweeted that he was “deeply saddened by the murder of a Hindu activist Harsha”, one must recall, had not expressed similar remorse when a Muslim youth was beheaded in Belagavi for being in love with a Hindu girl or when another was killed in Nargund in what was suspected to be a hate crime. The police have named Rama Sene and Bajrang Dal members, respectively, as suspects in these cases. The CM’s words and the CM’s silence both show a clear tilt toward one community and do not inspire confidence in his neutrality and desire to maintain peace and harmony. Referring to the Gujarat riots, the then Prime Minister A B Vajpayee had exhorted the then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to follow ‘raj dharma’. The same advice holds good for Bommai, too. The police must quickly bring Harsha’s killers to justice. Equally, the ruling party must desist from using the murder to incite violence and polarise communities.</p>
<p>The murder of a Bajrang Dal activist, Harsha, in Shivamogga on Sunday deserves to be strongly condemned. But even more deplorable is the ruling BJP’s bid to use it to incite large-scale violence, due to which the entire district suffered on Monday. Even before the police complete their investigations, BJP leaders portrayed the murder as a communal crime, with minister K S Eshwarappa, who hails from the district, making provocative statements against Muslims. Police have found that Harsha himself was an ‘anti-social element’ who was involved in at least five cases of assault and attempt to murder, including attacks on members of the Muslim community, and have therefore not ruled out motives other than an immediate communal trigger for the murder.</p>.<p>The BJP appears to have perfected a ‘toolkit’ on how to arouse communal passions and benefit from them whenever a major election is being held in the country. The party is clearly also preparing the ground for the 2023 Assembly elections in Karnataka by raising communal issues and hoping to benefit from polarisation. Harsha’s body was kept in state for public viewing and over 1,000 people participated in the funeral procession although Section 144 was in force in the area at the time. This was reminiscent of the deliberate parading of the bodies of Godhra victims in Ahmedabad in 2002 that incited the subsequent large-scale communal carnage. It is unfortunate that police officers in Shivamogga did not act with a sense of responsibility and did not stop the procession, knowing full well its consequences. Police are expected to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law, not take decisions and actions that suit their political masters. Eshwarappa’s position in the ministry is untenable after his role in provoking violence.</p>.<p>Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, who tweeted that he was “deeply saddened by the murder of a Hindu activist Harsha”, one must recall, had not expressed similar remorse when a Muslim youth was beheaded in Belagavi for being in love with a Hindu girl or when another was killed in Nargund in what was suspected to be a hate crime. The police have named Rama Sene and Bajrang Dal members, respectively, as suspects in these cases. The CM’s words and the CM’s silence both show a clear tilt toward one community and do not inspire confidence in his neutrality and desire to maintain peace and harmony. Referring to the Gujarat riots, the then Prime Minister A B Vajpayee had exhorted the then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to follow ‘raj dharma’. The same advice holds good for Bommai, too. The police must quickly bring Harsha’s killers to justice. Equally, the ruling party must desist from using the murder to incite violence and polarise communities.</p>
