Bengaluru’s Narathpete witnessed massive protests after a shopkeeper was assaulted by a group of men for playing Hanuman Chalisa during ‘Azaan’. People could be heard chanting Jai Shree Ram and BJP MP Tejaswi Surya and Union Minister Shobha Karadlaje have been detained in the face of the protests.
BJP MP Surya had called for protests and urged party workers to join him at Nagarathpet on March 19, to protest against the incident. They had planned to begin their protests outside Mukesh’s Shop. The MP had also visited the victim shopkeeper and requested the City Commissioner B Dayananda to initiate an investigation into the matter in an unbiased and fair manner. The Protests have led to imposing of Section 144 in Bengaluru.
Reportedly, a shopkeeper was playing Hanuman Chalisa, a devotional hindu hymn dedicated to Lord Hanuman, at his shop. The police have said that there is no substantial evidence to support the accusation and the complaint did not mention it. According to the FIR, an altercation erupted between Mukesh and the gang members over loud music played, on Sunday evening at Siddangali under the Halasuru Gate police station.
A viral video, purportedly the CCTV footage of the altercation showed a group of youth confronting a shopkeeper over playing Bhajan during Azan time, which irked the men of the minority community. They questioned the shop owner, leading to a confrontation, which in turn led to a brawl. Based on the complaint, a case has been registered and three men were arrested.
The FIR has been registered under 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation), 504(intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 149(every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 307 (attempt to murder) and other relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.
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