English daily published in Bengaluru & Doha
Hubballi burns after offensive post, eight cops injured
By NT Correspondents
Bengaluru/Hubballi: The communal temperature in Karnataka further shot up after a frenzied mob resorted to stone throwing at a police station, houses and hospital in Old Hubballi damaging police vehicles and injuring cops over the alleged posting of objectionable content on social media, late Saturday night. Hubballi is considered communaly sensitive and had witnessed widespread violence a couple of decades ago over the Idgah Maidan controversy.
Prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC have been imposed in the city till April 20 as a precautionary measure. Additional police forces have been rushed to Hubballi to prevent the situation from going out of control. Eight police personnel including a police inspector who were injured in the stone throwing were admitted to hospital for treatment. The situation is said to be tense but under control. The miscreants who were involved in the violence were rounded up with the help of CCTV footage.
Hubballi-Dharwad Police Commissioner Labhu Ram told reporters that around 50 persons have been rounded-up so far and the arrests are still going on. The youth who had posted the objectionable content which had hurt the sentiments of a community, has been arrested. Police have been deployed at all sensitive areas in the city. In all, four jeeps and a number of twowheelers were damaged by the mob.
The violence began after the mob of around 1,000 people gathered in front of Old Hubballi station demanding action against the youth for putting up the derogatory post. They resorted to stone throwing and damaged police vehicles. By the time police reinforcements reached the spot, the mob had pelted stones at a private hospital and shops. The police then lobbed tear gas shells and lathicharged the mob to disperse it. Senior police arrived at the place and intensified patrolling in the old Hubballi area.
Cases have been filed against those who were part of the mob at Old Hubballi Police station.
Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai termed the Hubballi incident an organised attack and said those organisations behind it should know that the state will not tolerate such incidents.
“I want to tell very clearly that whoever takes law into their hands, our police will not hesitate from taking stringent action against them (rioters). Whoever they may be... whoever is behind it and instigated the mob will be punished. I want to tell the organisations behind such incidents, not to break the law. Karnataka state will not tolerate it,” Bommai said.
He also appealed to the people not to give political colour to this incident as it should be looked at from the law and order point of view. Replying to a query, he said, “If a large number of people gather outside the police station, certainly it means that it was an organised crime.
