The clash occurred on Wednesday evening near Garadi Apartment, close to the boundary of the Banashankari and Basavanagudi police station jurisdictions. The procession was travelling from Kumaraswamy Layout towards Lalbagh and the city centre when participants and activist Puneeth Kerehalli’s group confronted each other.
Investigators are examining allegations from both sides over what triggered the violence. Kerehalli and his associates are accused of approaching the procession carrying saffron flags, raising “Jai Shri Ram” slogans and attempting to prevent members of the procession from raising their customary slogans. Members of the procession, in turn, are accused of attacking Kerehalli’s associates after the confrontation intensified.
An associate of Kerehalli, identified as Murali, suffered a head injury during the altercation and was later taken to Victoria Hospital. The circumstances of the attack, including allegations that a weapon was used, form part of the criminal investigation.
Police personnel were already accompanying the Eid Milad procession when the confrontation developed. Officers attempted to separate the two sides, but arguments quickly turned physical. Additional personnel and senior officers were subsequently sent to the area as tensions rose.
Kerehalli and several supporters then staged a protest on KR Road demanding action against those accused of assaulting his associate. Their demonstration obstructed the road and affected traffic along the busy corridor connecting Banashankari with central Bengaluru.
Police attempted to move the injured man for medical treatment while persuading protesters to clear the carriageway. Kerehalli allegedly resisted efforts to end the protest and lay on the road before officers eventually moved the injured to hospital and brought the situation under control.
Kerehalli, 35, and an associate identified as Mattibabu were taken into custody as a precautionary measure. Three men named in a counter-case — Akhil Pasha, 18, Abubakar Siddiq, 24, and Syed Anas, 22 — were also arrested and produced before a court, taking the number held in connection with the confrontation to five.
Multiple cases have been registered at Basavanagudi police station following complaints from both groups. A complaint by Abdul Razzak Khan names Kerehalli and associates including Gopigowda, 26, and Vinod Nayak, 24, in connection with allegations surrounding the confrontation with the procession.
A counter-complaint lodged by Puneeth Kumar, also known as Puneeth Kerehalli, accuses members of the other group of assault, intimidation and acts promoting hostility between communities. The case invokes provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita dealing with communal enmity, unlawful assembly, attempted murder, causing hurt and criminal intimidation, along with provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Act.
A separate case has been registered over the blockade of KR Road after Basavanagudi traffic police complained that the protest obstructed public movement. Investigators are expected to rely on video recordings, CCTV footage and statements from police personnel and witnesses to reconstruct the sequence of events and determine individual responsibility.
The procession involved in the confrontation was one of two major Eid Milad processions passing through the Jayanagar subdivision. It began at Kumaraswamy Layout, crossed Banashankari and Basavanagudi, and was scheduled to proceed through Lalbagh West Gate and JC Road before reaching YMCA Ground.
Another procession travelled from Tilaknagar through Siddapura and Lalbagh before joining the route towards JC Road and YMCA Ground. Police had deployed personnel along both routes because of the size of the gatherings and the traffic implications.
