On the night of 11 August and the early hours of 12 August 2020, violent clashes took place around the residence of a legislator and the police stations of KG Halli and DJ Halli of the Indian city of Bangalore, Karnataka. Provoked by an inflammatory Facebook post on Muhammad that was allegedly shared by the nephew of Akhanda Srinivas Murthy, a state legislator of the Indian National Congress, a group of Muslims arrived at his house in protest which later turned violent.
The clashes between the police and the mobs happened around the residence of the legislator and the police stations of KG Halli and DJ Halli. The incident resulted in the imposition of a curfew in the affected areas. 3 people were killed after police opened fire on the crowds. 30–80 policemen and several journalists, were injured by armed assailants. Murthy's property was torched during the period of violence.
The following day, over 100 people were arrested by the police. Some of the crowds were also allegedly led by members of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), and has led to the arrest of a few of its leaders.
Incident
On 11 August 2020, the nephew of an Indian National Congress state legislator Akhanda Srinivas Murthee allegedly posted a derogatory remark on Facebook that targeted the Islamic prophet Muhammad. The post went viral in the area and people began gathering in front of the legislator's residence in Kaval Byrasandra in protest, demanding that the accused be arrested. The police sent two teams from the DJ Halli station to detain the nephew.
According to the police, at around 8p.m., small groups had arrived at Kaval Byrasandra, following which hundreds started gathering around the DJ Halli police station, demanding action against those responsible for the social media message. Members of the SDPI were reportedly present in the crowd at DJ Halli. The people present there tried to report a complaint but claimed that the police were not acting swiftly, which agitated the crowd.
The News Minute reported there were 17–20 Muslims protesting in front of the legislator's residence at 8:30p.m., however within the next hour the numbers swelled to around 200, joined by people armed with sticks, petrol and kerosene cans. This crowd began throwing stones, vandalising the residence and eventually set a part of the property on fire. The legislator and his family were not present inside the residence at the time of the attack. The mob reportedly also indulged in looting at the residence; according to Murthy, ornaments and sarees went missing from his house.
Meanwhile, the police at DJ Halli station attempted to defuse the tension with the assistance of local community members but when one of the teams returned without the accused, the crowd forcefully entered the station, vandalised it and even set police vehicles on fire. At 10:30p.m., two other Congress state legislators Zameer Ahmed Khan and Rizwan Arshad arrived at the DJ Halli station to help subdue the situation but the violence had reportedly gotten out of control by this time. The Bengaluru Police Commissioner, Kamal Pant also arrived around the same time. Between 11:00 p.m and 12:30 a.m, a group of Muslim youths also formed a human chain around the local temple near DJ Halli station to protect it in case of any escalation. According to a later testimony from the police, that fortunately "the riots did not snowball into a communal riot". Eventually the Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) had to be called in to disperse the crowd and free the policemen trapped inside the station. The KSRP began by lathi charges, proceeded to firing tear gas, then firing warning shots and eventually fired live rounds at the crowd.
In Kaval Byrasandra, by 10:30 p.m the mob at Murthy's house had moved to his nephew's residence, demanding that he be handed over to them and on receiving no response barged in, vandalised and looted the house. The resident family took refuge in a neighbor's house by climbing through parapets. The family's car was burned down as well. The mob eventually moved around the neighborhood setting fire to several cars and a bar. Around 11p.m., rumours started spreading that a neighbouring police station, KG Halli, was protecting the legislator's nephew. During the confrontation with the police in DJ Halli, a section of the mob dispersed and a new mob was formed at KG Halli that attempted to enter the station. However, this mob was met with stronger resistance from the police and in the end resorted to burning down cars parked outside. Several policemen and journalists outside the station were injured by the armed mob. The crowds eventually scattered after the police at DJ Halli station began firing.