Kumaraswamy slams Bommai over halal, hijab, Muslim vendors rows

With a campaign against ‘halal’ meat underway in Karnataka, close on the heels of controversies such as the boycott of Muslim vendors at temple fairs and the hijab row, former Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy on Thursday hit out at the Basavaraj Bommai-led BJP government for its inaction against right wing groups.

“In the last one month since all this began, what action has your government taken,” Kumaraswamy asked while speaking at a forum on communal harmony in Bengaluru. “Three months ago, I had predicted that everyday a new issue will be raked up in Karnataka and now that is happening.” 

Earlier in the day, Kumaraswamy dared Bommai “to take action if you are a man” against the right wing groups behind these campaigns. Though he later apologised for his uncharacteristic outburst, Kumaraswamy said he would take out a padayatra across the state if the Chief Minister failed to act within a month. 

Also read: What’s halal meat? What’s Hindutva groups’ beef with it?

“That you have remained silent indicates that you have approved these activities,” he said, adding that these issues were being raked up with elections in sight. “I am ready for an agitation. I’ve been a chief minister twice so that is not important to me. People’s livelihood is important for me,” said Kumaraswamy. 

Right wing groups in Karnataka have been campaigning against halal meat ahead of the Kannada new year, Ugadi, which is celebrated by many communities with a feast that includes meat dishes. Instead, they are promoting what is known as ‘jatka-cut’ meat.

Kumaraswamy also congratulated Biocon Ltd’s Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw for speaking out on the issue through Twitter on Thursday. “Karnataka has always forged inclusive economic development and we must not allow such communal exclusion. If IT-BT became communal it would destroy our global leadership. @BSBommai please resolve this growing religious divide,” Mazumdar-Shaw had tweeted. 

Also read: Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw bats for communal harmony, appeals to CM Bommai to end ‘exclusion’

Kumaraswamy called upon people not to fall for hate campaigns and lashed out against right wing groups like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal. “They are not the ones who will save the Hindu religion. It is upto us to save Hindu society,” he said.

“Today, you want to ban halal. But this year, mango growers are suffering because their yield is lower by 70-80 per cent due to untimely rains. To sell whatever crop they have, they rely on our Muslim brothers. That is the bond between them,” Kumaraswamy said. “You cannot talk of boycotting anyone so easily.”