“We were at the spot as soon as we received information, but were told by people that they wanted local leaders to come before clearing the site of desecration. It was a flashpoint that had to be handled carefully,” he said.

Tajuddin, a resident of Udayagiri whose house bore bullet marks, said: “As word spread around, Muslims from all over began gathering at the Udayagiri circle, blocking traffic and staging a protest. When the violence started, it was insane. There were even children throwing stones. The police were firing. People in Mysore do not vote on communal lines. They want development. The Congress has few strong Muslim leaders and is trying to hang on to the support even as the BJP is winning support. This fact is at the core of the situation here.” Tajuddin is the son of former Mysore corporator Fakhrunama Khanum. He said Muslims feel they were being treated as second class citizens by the BJP government.

Tanveer Sait, the Congress MLA for the Narasimha Raja constituency under which Udayagiri falls, said the violence was a result of the tension in April when 84 Muslims were arrested and “falsely” accused of desecrating temples and the home of a former mayor.