About 100 members of the Hindu Jagaran Vedike and the Bharatiya Janata Party took out a rally from the Dandeen Durgah temple in Bhatkal demanding the arrest of people who threw animal blood on the temple walls. The members also sat on a Dharna outside the Town Police Station and later submitted a memorandum to the DySP Shiv Kumar.

On May 17, bloodstains were found on the walls of Dandeen Durgah temple wall, following which a number of people gathered near the temple. However, the police managed to keep things in control and said that the blood sample had been sent to a forensic laboratory for further examination. 

Bhatkal BJP leader Govind Naik, who was leading the protests, said these attacks were meant to hurt religious sentiments of Hindus. "There are so many places of worship in this town belonging to all faiths, but why are only temples being targeted? The police must investigate this matter with utmost seriousness and treat it as a an issue of high priority. If the police fails to act within a month, we will no longer ask for police permission for protests and instead hit the roads directly in far bigger numbers," he said.  

It may be noted that between June and December 2016, animal  bones, head and meat were found at different temples in Bhatkal. Later, it was reported that a BJP leader was allegedly involved in placing cow meat inside a temple to incite communal violence in Bhatkal. However, the police failed to make arrests and the case remains pending.