PM Modi Repeats False Claim About Lord Ganesh Idol Being ‘Arrested’ in Karnataka

The Bengaluru Police told The Quint that the idol was kept away for safety and was later immersed as per rituals.

The viral claim is false as the idol had been taken away from the protesters for immersion.

(Source X/Altered by The Quint)

Speaking at a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rally in poll-bound Haryana on 14 September, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that the Congress-led government in Karnataka had put the idol of Hindu deity Ganesh "behind bars."

An archive of this post can be seen here.

(Source: X (formerly Twitter)/Screenshot)

He later repeated the claim while announcing the inauguration of developmental projects in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, on 18 September.

The claim was also shared by many social media users, whose posts can be seen here, here, and here.

Is it true?: No, the claim is false.

• Hindu organisations had organised a protest against the Nagamangala Ganesh procession's stone-pelting incident at the Town Hall in Bengaluru.

• According to the police, the order of the High Court was disregarded in this matter and the protesters were detained.

• The idol, which was being transported by the protesters, had been kept in the police's vehicle to keep it separate from the protesters, and had not been "arrested" as claimed.

• Later, the officials immersed the Ganesh idol as per Hindu rituals.

How did we find out the truth?: Using relevant keywords such as 'Ganesh idol Bengaluru police', we looked for news reports related to the claim.

• We came across a report by Hindustan Times, which mentioned that after a picture of the idol inside the police van went viral, a senior police official clarified that " it was collected for immersion."

The report mentioned the authorities had immersed the idol.

(Source: Hindustan Times/Altered by The Quint)

• The incident took place at the Town Hall in Bengaluru, where people had planned to protest against the recent clashes in Nagamangala, Karnataka and police were deployed at the protest site.

• According to another report by India Today, violent clashes broke out between two communities during the Ganesh Chaturthi procession in Karnataka's Nagamala area in Mandya district.

• The violence led to large-scale vandalism, with reports of Hindu shops, automobile showrooms, and clothing stores being set on fire.

Police confirms: The Quint contacted the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) of Bengaluru Central Division, who corroborated the information in the news report.

"On 13 September 2024, Hindu groups protested at the Town Hall in Bengaluru over the Nagamangala Ganesha procession incident, in defiance of the High Court order. The protesters were detained. The authorities later immersed the Ganapati idol as per rituals."

We also came across a post regarding the same incident on Bengaluru Police's official X account, which carried the viral image of the Ganesh idol.

This post, too, clarified that the idol was later immersed by officials.

Conclusion: PM Modi and social media users' claims of Karnataka police "arresting" an idol of Lord Ganesh are false.

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