Are Communal Clashes Tarnishing The Reputation Of Karnataka?

The southern state of Karnataka has been engulfed in a wave of unrest for the past several months now. After the incumbent Chief Minister, Basavraj Bommai, took over from BS Yediyurappa, Karnataka became a hotbed of communal tensions. A spate of incidents in the Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled state has often been accused of ruining the relationship between Hindus and Muslims in the state. There is no denying that the government has successfully kept the issues and the incidents local to a large extent; however, its inaction against the tensions seems like an unsaid approval of the same, and that is a matter of grave concern.

A Slew Of Communal Events In Karnataka

Things seemed to slip out of BJP's hands after the state assembly tabled the anti-conversion bill. The second major controversy happened when six young women demanded their right to wear a Hijab to educational institutions. The next thing that became a piece of breaking news was how thousands of Hindu groups were mobilized for a protest. The government could barely control the controversy, which spread in different districts like a wildfire. The following demand for a Halal meat ban was because Hindus did not want to consume the meat cut after reciting a Muslim prayer. Lastly, the demand for taking down loudspeakers from mosques so that Azaan is not played loudly is an example of how the government has been facing a hard time lately.

Moreover, the religious groups wanted to bring the change to a more profound level. After banning the sale of cow meat in the state that accounts for 13 per cent of Muslims in its population, the government had initiated talks to introduce Bhagavad Gita in the school curriculum and omit a chapter on the 18th-century Muslim ruler Tipu Sultan on the pretext that it glorified the ruler.

The socio-economic environment took a turn for the worse when BS Yediyurappa stepped down as the Chief Minister in mid-2021. However, he was often categorized as a hardliner Hindu politician; the state's right-wing groups operated with some restraint, thereby not showing that the government was backing one religion against another in a communal conflict. A similar harmony was expected after Bommai came to power since he has his roots in socialist politics in Janata Dal. Ironically, right-wing fringe groups seem to be having a gala time since Bommai took over.

The BJP government seems to have adopted a Hindutva approach in Karnataka, themed around caste-based electoral mobilization. What started with several instances of hate speeches by the local politicians took a turn for the worse when hardliner communal groups took the law into their hands. All incidents were targeted toward the minorities in the state. Most often, the state government seems to have no control over the incidents that have taken a communal turn and, in many cases, the government tries to catch up with what has already happened.

A significant and very peculiar ideological shift took place after Basavraj Bommai took the baton of leadership in the state. Despite Home Minister Amit Shah's endorsement of the incumbent CM, not many in the party believe that he could secure the chair in the upcoming elections. Surprisingly, politicians are not even confident that Bommai can secure the votes of his community, the Lingayats, who are a significant majority.

A Hard-Hitting Economic Impact

Karnataka, a state synonymous with having the Silicon Valley of India, has been in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Delhi took over Bengaluru as the hub of startups in the latest survey. The massive impact of the pandemic had already crippled the state's finances; now, the communal tensions are further acting as a threat to investors who might have turned out to be the forebearers of Karnataka's revenue. In the last two years, as many as 754 families have shut down, and over 46,000 people were left jobless, without any financial alternative to support themselves.

The contribution from the small-scale industries reduced by 21 per cent in 2019 to 19.4 per cent in 2020-21. The government had replied to its counterpart, Congress, that the former does not have any mechanism to provide for the people who have lost their jobs in the last two years. The shortage of demand for products, lack of raw material, old and obsolete machinery, shortage of working capital, labour problems and investment in unwanted assets were cited as some of the shutting down of the factories.

Industrialists often choose to remain mum over political tribulations in countries or states. However, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, founder of biotechnology giant Biocon, took to Twitter to denounce Karnataka's 'communal exclusion', thereby underlining the state's Hindutva politics' sharp turn. It is appalling to witness both the state government and the Judiciary indirectly endorsing the people's actions behind communal tensions. Legal scholars have heavily criticized the Karnataka High Court's decision of upholding the Hijab ban.

Over 60 per cent of Karnataka's revenues are accrued from the hustle-bustle of the state's capital which is home to more than 10 million people. BBC reported that Bengaluru is home to more than 13,000 technology start-ups. Some 40 per cent of India's 100-odd unicorns - unlisted companies with a valuation of more than $1bn - are based here. Thanks to Bangalore, the state generates 41 per cent of India's info-tech exports.

Fortunately for secular and democratic India, the political situation in Karnataka does not represent the sentiment of the rest of the states in Southern India. Even though Karnataka is often called the 'Gateway to the South', BJP has sparsely been able to make its way in the Dravidian-speaking South compared to the North. Alternatively, the internal tussle of views in the BJP might become the founding reason for the party's downfall in the state in the upcoming elections.

Two Karnataka legislators recently openly opposed the ban on Muslims in temple fairs. While lately, political scholars are increasingly comparing Karnataka to Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat, it is doubtful that the state can be pegged at a spot where Hindutva has much more profound and ancient roots. The internal friction and even the protests from business leaders in the state show won't be an easy win for the saffron party in Karnataka.

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