Bhatkal witnessed sudden communal tension on Sunday night, May 24 prompting the taluk police to resort to a lathicharge to prevent escalation.
According to police and local accounts, tensions flared on May 25 when members of a Hindu organisation reportedly rebuilt a structure that housed a small Hindu shrine for several years before it was cleared for highway expansions a few months ago.
The site is what is referred to as a Murin Katte. Katte is a stone or cement structure commonly found under trees on which shrines are constructed.
Sections of the local Muslim community, however, opposed the reconstruction. Hindu residents argued that they were merely restoring what previously existed. The confrontation soon escalated into heated arguments and some physical altercations.
Police personnel intervened, but an officer attempting to mediate was allegedly pushed, leading authorities to deploy a lathicharge to disperse both groups and prevent further unrest.
Hindu organisations and local leaders associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) later alleged that certain individuals were deliberately attempting to inflame communal tensions. They stated that the disputed structure had been removed earlier by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) during highway expansion, with the assurance that it would be rebuilt alongside the widened stretch of National Highway 66.
“The tiny temple has been reconstructed as agreed. The objections raised now are baseless since the site lies along NH-66,” they said.
Police secured the disputed location and enforced prohibitory orders from 6am May 25 to 6am May 27.