The Bengaluru police have received at least five complaints against a right-wing Hindu group for allegedly raising saffron flags at shops in the Vijaynagar market area in the city. The complaints point to social media posts which say that only certain shops owned by members of the majority community were being marked. The police have not filed a first information report (FIR) over this.
On 18 May, members of a pro-Hindu group installed saffron flags on shops in the area. A video of the incident, too, had surfaced on social media. After some of the flags were removed over the next two days, the members of the Hindu group returned two days later to tie saffron flags again on pushcarts and shops in the area.
Following this, residents and advocates filed five separate complaints at Vijayanagar police station, highlighting social media posts stating that shops were being marked along religious lines in an attempt to communalise the area.