Fallout of Congress Party’s Minority Appeasement Politics

Two recent cases in Karnataka - Mukesh G Singh, Small Shop Owner in Bengaluru in March and Neha’s murder on 18 April 2024 – clearly highlight adverse fallout of Congress Party’s appeasement politics – self goal or hit-wicket.

In Bengaluru, five Muslim youths assaulted Mukesh G Singh for playing Hanuman Chalisa in his mobile store. He was accused of disturbing nearby prayers – Azaan - with "loud music." Three suspects were arrested while two remain at large. The victim provided CCTV footage to the police.

In Hubbali, Neha (23), the daughter of Congress Councilor of Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation Niranjan Hiremath, was stabbed to death on the campus of BVB College on April 18, by 23-year-old Fayaz, ex-classmate 7 times in college over rejected advances.

Murder is murder. Why are there any doubts? The full video is available. What is the need for either a CBI or CID investigation? What are they going to establish? To say that it is not “Love Jihad”!

The clash of religions is a grim reality, particularly in the State of Karnataka. There is vicious churning in the Society. Not a single day passes without an eruption of one issue or another. Radical forces on either side are clashing with each other on every single opportunity.

For example, the “Hijab” agitation recently made headlines. Add to it, the PFI, SIMI and the ISIS radical organizations footprint and sway in Karnataka. After all, Rameshwaram Cafe blast suspects lived in Bengaluru while on the run in the IS module case since 2020. Terror groups are on the prowl in the State of Karnataka. The comparative study of terror cases reveals that Karnataka State is in the top 5-6 states.

Cumulatively and conjointly reviewed, their fallout is simple. Minority vote bank appeasement policy of the Congress Party is real. Its result is steady Hindu polarization. Also, there are many law and order shortcomings due to politicization of police forces to toe the line of their political masters. Add to it, the failure of the judiciary to conduct hearings on a daily basis and deliver verdicts convicting the accused to gallows instead of resorting to a phenomenal number of adjournments on trivial grounds.

Most important, the issue that needs to be addressed is whether Siddaramaiah, Chief Minister of Karnataka, DK Shivakumar, Deputy CM and the Dr. G. Parameshwara, State Home Minister, can assure speedy delivery of justice in a time frame of 3 months? OR, are they going to buy time to delay the delivery of justice without any end in sight for the sake of minority appeasement?

Of course, there is politicization of both cases, particularly due to ongoing Parliament elections. Initial responses of Siddaramaiah, DK Shivakumar and Dr. G. Parameshwara was undeniably insensitive. Neha's father alleged it was a case of ‘love jihad’. As per news in the public domain, Neha’s murder was inspired By 'Kerala Story'.

Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on April 20 said, "This is not a case of love jihad. I condemn the incident. We have arrested the culprit, the investigation is going on seriously and we will punish the culprit. We have taken care of law and order seriously to maintain peace and harmony. BJP is using this issue for politics; it is condemnable that a political party (BJP) is using the murder of a girl for political purposes."

Insensitive statements like “Not Love Jihad”, “law will take its own Course” etc. provided an opportunity to the opposition BJP in the State to launch protests. After the protests broke out only, they tendered apologies to Niranjan Hiremath, father of Neha.

Let me highlight that there is nothing new about “Love Jihad”. Way back in 1967 in Chennai, Nk. Hussain of my unit who used to take the child to the school over time befriended a Brahmin very good looking teacher posing as an officer and married her against her parent’s approval. So, it is an ongoing phenomenon. The difference today is the rise of Hindu community to stem the growth of “Love Jihad”.

In response to the demand of handing over the case to the CBI, DK Shivakumar stated that the state government is fully capable of handling the case on its own. The Karnataka government will deal with it in its own way. There is no question of handing over the case to the CBI.

State Women Commission Chairman Naglakshmi Choudhary said, "The police are investigating the case. All the evidence has been collected properly. Now the blood is gone for DNA investigation. Once it comes, within three months Neha will get justice." She advocated for expedited proceedings as a fast-track court and urgent execution of justice: “the accused should be hanged. It will be a message. It is not merely to voice concerns when such incidents occur.

Earlier, Niranjan Hiremath had expressed deep dissatisfaction with the ongoing investigation into his daughter's murder on her college premises. Niranjan had demanded the transfer of the police commissioner for alleged "negligence" in the case. "I have given the names of 8 people openly. They have not even caught one person. I am losing faith now. They are trying to divert my case. Give it to the CBI if you cannot do it. The commissioner in this case is a lady; even then she is not taking a girl's murder seriously... She is working under some pressure. I demand the commissioner should be transferred for negligence in the case. I demand that the case should be given to the CBI," Hiremath told ANI.

Niranjan Hiremath also had stated that for vote bank politics, suppressing and hushing up is Congress policy. This is all happening due to that...There is a 'love jihad' but they do not want to investigate that.

However, Niranjan Hiremath retracted later and expressed satisfaction over the progress of investigation of his daughter’s murder.

Meanwhile, JP Nadda, the BJP President paid the visit to express their sympathy and console the aggrieved parents. Even B Y Vijaendra, BJP State President, also visited Neha’s parents and expressed support. BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said that it is unfortunate that instead of standing with the family of Neha, the Congress leaders are trying to shield the mentality of the criminal.

BJP State president B.Y. Vijayendra, who met the family, and after consoling has said that the State government is trying to mislead investigation. Vijayendra clarified that there is no question of politicizing the issue, but they have continued their protest because of the actions and statements of Ministers and the Chief Minister that indicated appeasement politics. Vijayendra said that even when Congress leader Akanda Srinivas Murthy’s house was torched by miscreants, the Congress government failed to provide justice to their leader. Now the same is happening in the killing of Neha also and the statements of Ministers indicated appeasement, he said.

The Karnataka unit of BJP on Monday, April 22, staged statewide protests against the brutal murder of Neha Hiremath. BJP leaders and party workers in the state held protests over Neha's murder. ABVP, the student’s wing of the BJP, organized protests in Hubbali to protest the murder of Neha Hiremath.

Tejasvi Surya, head of the BJP youth wing, attacked the Congress party on X and wrote, "Congress' appeasement politics sustained over the last 10 months, exhibited through casual behavior towards hate crimes, have emboldened anti-social elements with an unsaid promise of impunity. This is the primary reason behind such incidents recurring in Karnataka."

Surprisingly for a change, Anjuman-I-Islam, social organization’s President Esmail Tamatgar speaking to PTI on April 21, Tamatgar had said, “Tomorrow we will observe a band. Chicken shops, garage workshops, fruit vendors, banks, institutions will remain closed to condole the death and show our solidarity with the family. We will put up ‘Justice for Neha’ stickers at our shops.

To sum up, the clash of religions is a grim reality due to minority vote bank appeasement politics. Consequently, there is a never ending eruption of cases on various counts and counter agitations. Such a vicious oft-repeated happenings can ultimately result in utter chaos and anarchy.