Bengaluru rioters adopted guerrilla warfare strategy of attack and retreat, sought 'Instant Justice'

New Delhi: After 48 hours, it is gradually becoming clear that the Bengaluru riots did not happen suddenly but were triggered in a planned way. The role of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) is coming into the light for playing a key role behind mob violence in parts of the city that claimed atleast three lives and scores were injured.

The four FIRs lodged against the rioters clearly indicated that the controversial Facebook post was just an excuse, while the script and actors of these riots were already prepared. The DNA report will explain as to how these riots were planned as part of a larger conspiracy, as it has the copies of these FIRs in its possession. 

The first important fact stated is that the rioters had planned to attack the two police stations and kill the policemen. Notably, gangster Vikas Dubey's gang in Bikaru village of Kanpur had killed just 8 cops, but in Bengaluru, 800 armed rioters gheraoed the police station and appeared ready to kill the cops had they been able to catch them.

Over 60 policemen were injured in the riots on Tuesday night. The rioters were shouting slogans against them and they were also hurling abuses on them, while those who were leading the mob were asking people to kill the cops. The rioters wanted the police to hand them over the man accused of making the controversial post on Facebook.

The police had arrested the nephew of Congress MLA Akhand Srinivas Murthy for allegedly making objectionable comments against Prophet Mohammad Saheb on Facebook, but it refused to hand him over to the rioters, who therefore set the police stations, KG Halli and DG Halli, on fire and attacked the policemen.

The FIR stated that these rioters had come with complete preparation to target the police stations. They had also attacked the Congress MLA's house and set his house on fire. The rioters were stated to be in five groups of 200 to 300 people carrying sharp-edged weapons, brick-stones, bottles, iron rods, and petrol bombs.

They adopted guerrilla warfare tactics to attack the police and dispersed in the narrow lanes of that area in ​​Bengaluru. Not once, but five times the violent mob launched its attack, and each time the number was greater than earlier. The rioters had also blocked the road so that the police of other areas could not reach there. The fire brigade vehicles deployed to extinguish the fire were also blocked and the employees were beaten up by the mob.

Surprisingly, the irate mob gathered within an hour of the controversial post on social media showing that the riots were already planned. Although the FIR is written in Kannada, we have understood the whole incident of Tuesday night. Accordingly, at 8 pm on Tuesday night, the police arrested the Congress MLA's nephew, who posted the controversial post on Facebook, but within 45 minutes, five persons named Muzammil Pasha, Syed Masood, Afnan, Ayaz and Allah Baksh surrounded the police station, along with a mob of around 200 to 300 people.

Since the motive of the crowd was to attack the accused who made controversial remarks, they started pelting stones at the policemen, injuring many. The policemen present at the police station informed their senior officers to immediately send additional police force. MLA Akhand Srinivas Murthy also tried to pacify the mob but the irate crowd did not listen to him and set on fire the vehicles parked outside the police station.

When additional police force reached the spot and asked the crowd to vacate the area immediately, but the crowd did not budge an inch despite aerial firing. The police then used tear gas and fired several rounds, killing three of the rioters. The whole incident indicates that like every riot, violence in Bengaluru did not happen on its own but was well-planned, and the Facebook post was just a trigger. 

First Delhi, and now Bengaluru--the city has changed but the pattern of riots remains the same. The masterminds of the riots have tried to tarnish Bengaluru's image the way they did in Delhi. Among those who led the violent mob was Muzammil Pasha, a local leader of the SDPI, which is the political outfit of the Islamic fundamentalist organization People's Front of India (PFI) which is also accused of funding the Delhi riots.

According to the Intelligence Unit of Jharkhand Police, the PFI wants to make some cities in India like Syria. Like the Bengaluru riots, the PFI triggered violence in Pakur, Sahibganj, and Jamtara districts of Jharkhand. Similar violence has also been witnessed in West Bengal. 

In 2016, the PFI reportedly organised a rally in support of Zakir Naik, in which slogans of Pakistan Zindabad and Hindustan Murdabad were raised. The outfit has been accused of spreading violence through the communal frenzy, social division, and on the basis of bigotry and anti-national sentiments.