Section 144 Imposed In Karnataka's Shivamogga

A dispute broke out when a group of people in Shivamogga, Karnataka, objected against attempts to take down a poster of Hindu idealist VD Savarkar that had been put up at Ameer Ahmad circle on Monday, the nation's 76th Independence Day.

After a group of Tipu Sultan supporters attempted to take down VD Savarkar's banners in order to put up Tipu Sultan's poster, tensions erupted. Police used lathi-charge in order to quell the incident. Due to a conflict that broke out between the two groups near Ameer Ahmad Circle, the Shivamogga police have implemented Section 144.

A man named Dharam Singh was stabbed by Muslim teenagers in Shivamogga amidst the ongoing unrest.

In a related incident, Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) members objected to a flex banner that had been placed at the Surathkal crossroads in Mangaluru designating the circle after Savarkar and demanded that it be taken down. The Surathkal branch of the SDPI objected to the flag and informed the police about it. Following orders from corporation commissioner Akshay Sridhar, the corporation took down the banner on Sunday night.

On the request of Mangaluru North BJP MLA Y Bharath Shetty, the Mangaluru municipal corporation had previously approved a proposal to name the circle after Savarkar. The civic organisation is awaiting approval from the authorities to formally name the circle.

According to Sridhar, the proposal to rename the circle after Savarkar was approved by the corporation council. The flex banner was taken down in response to the concerns even though the government has not yet formally granted authorization.