Communal Forces Target Old Mysuru Belt, Local Politics at Play

Old Mysuru, known for its secular and pluralistic society, is quite suddenly in the grip of communal unrest.

- Bansy Kalappa @ Bengaluru

Violence erupted on Monday during a Ganesha Visarjan procession in Maddur, where stone-pelting reportedly injured six people and led to over 20 detentions. Locals claimed the attack originated from the Ram-Rahim Nagar area, specifically from a mosque and surrounding terraces. The incident triggered massive protests by Hindu groups and reignited accusations of police inaction.

The region, free from communal violence for decades, appears vulnerable and is fast becoming a communal battleground. Tensions have flared in Nagamangala, Keregodu, and surrounding regions. What was once confined to coastal Karnataka is now spreading towards the Old Mysore belt, raising fears that the region is being deliberately targeted by communal forces seeking to exploit fragile local dynamics after the JDS joined hands with the BJP as an NDA ally.