KAILASA - The Grand Narrative of Hinduism

Targeted persecution of minorities of Tamil origin in Karnataka

In 1956, different States of Bharat were reorganized. This led to the marginalization of people of Tamilian ethnicity in the areas, which were acceded to from the erstwhile Madras Presidency to the new-found Greater Mysore. The city of Bangalore, which itself was founded in 1537, predominantly comprised people of Tamil ethnicity in its demographic composition. Until 1991, people of Tamilian ethnicity formed the largest ethnic group in Bangalore Urban district. The 1991 census, for the first time, recorded a Kannada-speaking majority ahead of the people of Tamil ethnicity in this district.
On 25 June 1991, the Kaveri Water Tribunal, constituted in 1990, directed the Karnataka state government to release 205 billion ft³ (5.8 km³) of water to Tamil Nadu within a year. Karnataka issued an ordinance to annul the tribunal's award, but this was struck down by the Supreme Court of Bharat. The tribunal's award was subsequently gazetted by the Government of Bharat on 11 December 1991. Neo-Hindutva caste supremacists used this opportunity to incite violence for petty political gains. The very next day, Neo-Hindutva caste supremacist extremists of Karnataka called for a bandh on 13 December 1991 alleging partisan behavior of the Government of Bharat. Leader of the neo-Hindutva caste supremacist extremists declared, "Cauvery(river) is the mother of the Kannadigas, so we cannot give the water to anybody else."
The next day, 14 December 1991, the neo-Hindutva extremists allegedly roamed the streets of Bangalore carrying sticks, shouting slogans, beating up Tamil laborers. Businesses run by people of Tamil ethnicity, Tamil language movie theatres, and even vehicles with Tamil Nadu license plates were targeted. Soon the riots spread to the Mysore district and other parts of southern Karnataka. Tamil-speaking villagers were driven out and their property confiscated. A curfew of one week was declared under section IPC 144. The violence left more than 17 ethnic Tamils dead. More than 15,000 people of Tamil ethnicity were forced to flee the State.

Such targeting of ethnic minorities of Tamil origin continued over the decades, incited and multiplied by hate propaganda created by the politically owned neo-Hindutva media. In 2016, in another such protest, two people were killed. Sugata Raju, editorial director of the Asianet group - a BJP owned neo-Hindutva media house which runs Suvarna News, gave an interview where he said, "I am embarrassed. Instead of disseminating information, TV channels became agent provocateurs." As per their admission, though they accepted their role in flaring the violence, they justified their acts, blaming other channels to instigate this by a race for television rating points.