A Hindu youth was attacked by a mob over his comment on a social media post on Tipu Sultan in Karnataka’s Bagalkote. On February 19, A youth named Prakash Lonare had allegedly commented a ‘smiley emoji’ on a post dedicated to tyrant Tipu Sultan that triggered an enraged mob of 15-20 people who attacked him. The news was shared on Twitter by journalist Chiru Bhat.
#BREAKING: Hindu youth Prakash Lonare was attacked yesterday with swords in Karnataka’s Bagalkote. Local MLA Veeranna Charantimatha & Pramod Mutalik visited him in the District Hospital.
— Chiru Bhat | ಚಿರು ಭಟ್ (@mechirubhat) February 21, 2022
Sources tell me that he had allegedly posted “??” emoji for Tippu Sultan Pic. pic.twitter.com/0qmOq1ynP4
On the night of February 19, Saturday, a mob of 15 to 20 people attacked Prakash Lonare, a youth in Bagalkote, Karnataka. According to local journalist Somashekar, Prakash had commented with a smiley emoji on a post concerning Tipu Sultan, which angered his followers. The enraged mob confronted Prakash and after picking up an argument they attacked him with sharp weapons.
The news of attack on Prakash comes after reports emerged that 26-year-old Harsha, a Bajrang Dal activist in Shivamogga was killed over a social media post opposing the hijab ban.
Brutally injured Prakash was admitted to the city hospital. Local MLA Veeranna Charantimatha and Rashtriya Hindu Sena Chief Pramod Mutalik visited him on Sunday. A case has been registered against the accused in the Bagalkot city station.
Tipu Sultan, the eighteenth-century tyrant who was infamous for carrying out atrocities against Hindus and Syrian Christians, is revered by many in present-day Karnataka. Siddharamaiah-led Congress government in Karnataka had decided to celebrate his birth anniversary as a state festival; a move that had caused a massive uproar in the state. In 2015, in an agitation against the festival, two people including one VHP member were killed in the clashes in Karnataka’s Kodagu.
The legacy of the Islamic bigot while painting him as a secular icon is equally divisive and violent, as was his rule in the 18th-century Mysore.
