On August 11, the nephew of Congress leader R Akhanda Srinivasa Murthy posted an “offensive post” about Prophet Mohammed, which hurt the religious sentiments of the Islamic community. The post has since been deleted.
Soon after the post went viral, hundreds of people went on a rampage, after 8 pm in the night. The mob attacked the DJ Halli police station, set ablaze vehicles, and destroyed the furniture.
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Within an hour, protestors reportedly torched many police and private vehicles, smashed the belongings of MLA Murthy and those of his sister. An ATM was smashed into pieces.
The protestors also blocked fire engines to enter the area and douse the fire, reported News Minute.
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Protestors tried to lodge an FIR against Naveen but were reportedly denied. They then started shouting slogans, pelting stones and torching vehicles near the KG Halli police station.
Two hours after the protest, local police authorities resorted to lathi-charge, lobbed tear gas shells, and later opened fire to control the violent protest. Naveen, the accused, removed the post from his Facebook account and claimed that his account was hacked.
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The police were later given a “freehand” to control the crowd of violent attacks that lasted till early morning.
A group entered a basement area, where 200-250 vehicles were set on fire, said Kamal Pant, Bengaluru City Police Commissioner
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A senior police official told Indian Express that a detailed investigation is underway.