Bengaluru police file zero FIR over ‘purification’ ritual Uttarakhand’s Haldwani

Published - September 04, 2026 09:35 pm IST - Bengaluru

Bengaluru city police on Friday registered a zero FIR in connection with the alleged shuddikaran (purification) of the Ramlila Ground in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, days after Indian National Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge addressed a political rally at the venue in August.

The ‘shuddikaran yagna’ incident unfolded on August 11 at the Ramlila Ground in Haldwani. The alleged ritual, conducted by an outfit, followed a political rally addressed by Mr. Kharge at the venue on August 8.

Mr. Kharge and the Congress party had been demanding the registration of an FIR by the Haldwani police in connection with the incident. However, no FIR had been filed.

Meanwhile, earlier this week, T. Ramappa, a former member of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee SC/ST wing, lodged a complaint at the Vidhana Soudha police station in Bengaluru in connection with the incident, alleging that the purification exercise had insulted the community.

A senior police officer told The Hindu that the police had sought legal opinion on registering an FIR and received a report stating that they could proceed with the complaint. “A zero FIR has been registered against unknown persons, and it will be transferred to the Haldwani police station for further action,” the officer said.

Vidhana Soudha police have filed the FIR under Section 3(1)(u) the Scheduled castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, which deals with whoever, not being a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe, promotes or attempts to promote feelings of enmity, hatred, or ill-will against members of the Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes; Section 196 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (promoting enmity, hatred, or ill-will between different religious, racial, language, or regional groups, castes, or communities) and Section 7 of the Protection of Civil Rights Act.

Published - September 04, 2026 09:35 pm IST

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