BJP aiming for major communal flare-up ahead of 2028 Assembly polls, alleges KPCC spokesperson

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KPCC spokesperson M. Lakshmana addressing a press meet in Mysuru on Sunday. | Photo Credit: M.A. Sriram

Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) spokesperson M. Lakshmana has cautioned the public against efforts by the BJP and its frontal organisations to engineer a major communal flare-up between Hindus and Muslims ahead of the 2028 Assembly polls.

Addressing a press conference in Mysuru on Sunday, Mr. Lakshmana said the police and the State government needed to be wary of the BJP and its associates using the Ganesha festivals of 2026 and 2027 to foment communal trouble for political gain in the run-up to the next Assembly elections.

Describing the BJP’s protest at T. Narsipur town on Sunday as “shameful,” the Congress spokesperson said the police inspector had done nothing wrong in cautioning the groups taking out the Ganesha procession against creating a nuisance in front of the mosque, a warning that came in view of the trouble witnessed at the same spot last year.

“Isn’t it shameful that you (BJP) are trying to find fault with the police official’s statement? Isn’t protecting law and order their (the police’s) responsibility?” he asked.

If the BJP had any sense of shame, Mr. Lakshmana said, its leaders would have backed the police inspector’s statement instead of projecting it as an affront to the Hindu community’s sentiments.

He accused former MP Pratap Simha and sitting MP Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar of fanning communalism through their statements.

Taking a swipe at the Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, Mr. Lakshmana alleged that R. Ashok, instead of visiting drought-hit areas to check on drinking water arrangements, was only trying to incite communal violence with an eye on the next Assembly elections.

Targeting Mr. Yaduveer, Mr. Lakshmana said the Mysuru-Kodagu MP — who was present at T. Narsipur for the BJP protest on Sunday — had skipped a discussion in Madikeri on the Centre’s notification on the Kasturi Rangan report.

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