BJP’s ‘Dharmasthala Chalo’ Initiative : Reclaiming Hindutva Agenda in Karnataka?

‘Dharmasthala Chalo’: Is This Movement BJP’s Bid To Reclaim Its Core Hindutva Vote Bank?

‘Dharmasthala Chalo’ is aimed at reclaiming a lost vote base by projecting the conspiracy and smear campaign against the temple as an attack on Hindus.

Rohini Swamy  in News 18.

The BJP is increasingly pressuring the Congress government in Karnataka to hand over the investigation into the mass burial case in Dharmasthala to the NIA or the CBI.

The BJP has alleged that this is not only a conspiracy and smear campaign against Dharmasthala temple, but also about uncovering how the case may have been built on false evidence. It said with links emerging beyond Karnataka, the probe has become interstate.

The investigation took a new turn when the “masked man” Chinnaiah was reportedly seen with T Jayanth, a close aide of right-wing activist Mahesh Shetty Thimmarodi, who is being questioned by the police. Jayanth has emerged as a key link in the case, allegedly involved in presenting the remains of a woman before the Supreme Court.

The special investigation team (SIT) found the evidence Chinnaiah produced to be fake, further fuelling the BJP’s accusation that the state government is allowing the temple to be maligned. This has led to the momentum behind the ‘Dharmasthala Chalo’ movement.

The probe shifted focus after the SIT brought Chinnaiah to Bengaluru to retrace his steps and inspect three locations, including Jayanth’s residence in Mallasandra. Jayanth admitted to assisting Chinnaiah in presenting the skull for investigation, which is now being closely examined.

The controversy surfaced after Chinnaiah, arrested for perjury, claimed to have buried several bodies in Dharmasthala over the past two decades, including women showing signs of sexual assault. Acting on his claims, the SIT excavated multiple locations along the Netravati river banks, recovering skeletal remains from two sites.

The significance lies in Chinnaiah’s claim that he stayed at Jayanth’s house in April, where investigators believe the skull was first brought before being presented to the SIT. From here, the SIT traced Chinnaiah and Jayanth’s travel to Delhi, intending to present the case before the Supreme Court; hence, the BJP’s claim of an interstate probe.

“We are demanding that the investigation be handed over to the NIA or the CBI,” said BJP Karnataka president BY Vijayendra.

For the BJP, this indicates a “very big conspiracy” behind the allegations of multiple rapes, murders, and burials in Dharmasthala. Their strategy includes movements like ‘Dharmasthala Chalo’ and ‘Chamundi Chalo’, aiming to reclaim their lost vote base by projecting the conspiracy as an attack on Hindus and alleging pressure from “leftist” groups to malign the temple town.

Union minister Pralhad Joshi on Monday (September 1) said the ‘Dharmasthala Chalo’ rally is an effort to expose the conspiracy of the “ultra-left” within the Karnataka government to defame Hindu centres of faith. He accused the Congress of targeting Hindus and indulging in one-sided vote-bank politics.

“This rally was meant to unearth this conspiracy and called for a probe by the NIA into the case while saying that the Dharmasthala controversy was a ‘100 percent conspiracy’,” Joshi said.

The Congress, meanwhile, accused the BJP of politicising the issue but the saffron party has decided to turn the tables, accusing the grand old party of using the Dharmasthala row as a political weapon.

“We in the BJP will expose you. You did the same with the Waqf issue and the CAA,” Joshi said. “Now you are doing it with Dharmasthala.”

Critics, however, argued that this will generate publicity but not real political gains for the BJP. There is also a leadership angle to this, they said.

Vijayendra, who is awaiting clarity from the central leadership on whether he will continue as state president or be replaced, is seen as using this issue to showcase his relevance. For him, this is a signal to Delhi that under him, the BJP is still rallying its core constituency, galvanising the Hindutva base, and keeping the party’s core vote intact.

“These efforts may help bring back traditional supporters who may have drifted away, disillusioned with the BJP and its governance,” political analyst Sandeep Shastri observed.

Shastri pointed out that divisions and infighting in the BJP have left their base disillusioned, especially after the last assembly elections. “I think this is one way the state unit is trying to win back the support of those groups which traditionally backed them in 2008 and 2018,” he said.

Political analyst Harish Ramaswamy argued differently. He contended that Vijayendra, with little else to showcase, is resorting to yatras and symbolic agitations.

“He knows he can’t dislodge the government or destabilise it. So things like ‘Dharmasthala Chalo’ are being worked out. Look at what happened with his MUDA Yatra — they wasted so much time and energy, and it looked completely naive because nothing came out of it,” Ramaswamy said.
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This was first published in News 18 on Sept 2, 2025.
Courtesy: News 18. Views expressed are personal.