High Alert in Bhatkal After Religious Structure Moorina Katte Vandalized Following Dispute

High Alert in Bhatkal: A tense, volatile atmosphere grips Bhatkal town near Venkatapur in Uttara Kannada district after a newly reconstructed religious platform, the Moorina Katte, was partially demolished by a group on Sunday night.

According to reports, the Moorina Katte—a traditional resting platform for keeping deity idols and heavy loads that had existed for over a century—was removed some time ago for National Highway widening work.

Following this, Hindu pro-organizational groups, including Hindu Jagarana Vedike, had repeatedly requested highway authorities to allocate an alternative space to rebuild it. When no action was taken, frustrated activists voluntarily gathered on Sunday morning to reconstruct the platform on a public plot adjacent to the National Highway.

However, leaders of the minority community strongly opposed the construction, leading to heated arguments. To defuse the situation, a peace meeting was quickly organized by Sub-Divisional Officer (Assistant Commissioner) J. Mahesh, where efforts were made to clarify that the construction was taking place on land near the highway.

Despite the administration’s intervention, the reconciliation efforts failed to yield results. Late at night, a large crowd from the opposing community gathered at the spot, blocking the National Highway and raising slogans.

Even as Uttara Kannada Superintendent of Police (SP) Deepan and Deputy Superintendent of Police (DySP) Girish arrived at the scene to pacify the aggressive crowd, a few agitated individuals used iron rods to partially demolish the newly built structure right in front of the senior police officers.

Local Hindu activists have slammed the act, alleging that it was a deliberate attempt to hurt religious sentiments under the pretext of public land violations. Currently, the situation in Bhatkal remains highly sensitive, resembling embers covered in ash. A heavy police presence has been deployed across the town, and authorities are maintaining a strict vigil to prevent any communal flare-ups or untoward incidents.