in Karnataka Narendra Singh SARGUR 'hobli' (administrative unit) in H D Kote taluk of Karnataka was the scene of communal violence recently, claiming more than eight lives also leaving a trail of misery and fear. H D Kote taluk of Karnataka, bordering Kerala state, is a backward, underdeveloped area of subsistence agriculture. Sargur town is an administrative and trading centre, with an usual complement of facilities and services for the surrounding villages of the hobli. The town population comprises largely lingayats, nayaks, Jains, Muslims and a segregated dalit colony. The town dalits appear to be better off than the rural ones around. Among them, many are school educated or drop-outs and some even own small landholdings, though the large majority are wage earners and farm hands.