On Tuesday night, a mob rampaged through Bengaluru's Pulakeshi Nagar and vandalised Dalit Congress legislator Akhanda Srinivas Murthy's residence after his nephew Naveen shared a derogatory Facebook post on Prophet Muhammad.
110 people accused of arson, stone-pelting and assault on the police have been arrested in connection with the violence. Murthy's nephew Naveen has also been arrested, said Bengaluru Police Commissioner Kamal Pant.
Three people were killed in police firing, while 60 police personnel were injured during the violence. Also, more than 25 four-wheelers and 200 bikes were torched as police used lathi-charge, tear gas and firing to bring the mob under control.
Murthy later appealed the 'Muslim friends' to remain calm and not resort to violence. "I am appealing to my Muslim brethren that we should not resort to violence for the fault committed by some miscreants. There is no need to fight. We all are brothers. We will get the person punished as per law. We will also be with you. I appeal to the Muslim friends to be calm," he said.
Meanwhile, BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya targeted the Congress for 'disowning' their Dalit MLA for the party's vote bank. Taking to Twitter, Malviya wrote, "Bengaluru, India’s tech capital, goes up in flames amidst religious sloganeering...Police stations, media and Congress MLA Akhanda Srinivas Murthy, a Dalit, were attacked mercilessly. The Congress has however disowned their own legislator for vote bank!"
Moreover, Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's comments did not help the party's cause. The Congress leader asked both Hindus and Muslims to stay calm, drawing a lot of flak on social media.
The Congress party has condemned the violence and urged the people to maintain peace and law & order. "Our nation was founded on Mahatma Gandhi's principle of Ahimsa & resorting to violence yields nothing," the party tweeted.
