News Analysis India

Tag: Ram Navami violence

  • Former BJP legislator held in Bihar for Ram Navami violence

    By Online Desk

    The Bihar Police on Saturday arrested former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Jawahar Prasad for inciting violence in Sasaram town during Ram Navami rally on March 31, Maktoob Media reports quoting national dailies.

    Prasad, a five-time former MLA, was among the 67 persons arrested in connection with the Hindutva violence.

    A police team reached Prasad’s house and took him to the nearby police station. His supporters reached the police station and started raising slogans against the police, reports Hindustan Times.

    Rohtas Superintendent of Police, Vineet Kumar, said to Indian Express that the BJP leader was apprehended on Saturday following an investigation that revealed his involvement in the violence.

    Planned violence against Muslims were reported in several parts of Bihar during Ram Navami festivities. Besides Sasaram, violence was reported in Rohtas, Biharsharif, Nalanda, Bhagalpur, Gaya and Munger.

    Three BJP local leaders– Shivnath Choudhary, Sonu Sinha and Robin Keshri– had surrendered before the court on Friday after they were accused of anti-Muslim violence.

    Days before, Bajrang Dal convenor of Nalanda district, Kundan Kumar, involved in Hindutva violence in Bihar Sharif town, surrendered before the police after the authorities started property attachment of his house.

    The Bihar Police on Saturday arrested former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Jawahar Prasad for inciting violence in Sasaram town during Ram Navami rally on March 31, Maktoob Media reports quoting national dailies.

    Prasad, a five-time former MLA, was among the 67 persons arrested in connection with the Hindutva violence.

    A police team reached Prasad’s house and took him to the nearby police station. His supporters reached the police station and started raising slogans against the police, reports Hindustan Times.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    Rohtas Superintendent of Police, Vineet Kumar, said to Indian Express that the BJP leader was apprehended on Saturday following an investigation that revealed his involvement in the violence.

    Planned violence against Muslims were reported in several parts of Bihar during Ram Navami festivities. Besides Sasaram, violence was reported in Rohtas, Biharsharif, Nalanda, Bhagalpur, Gaya and Munger.

    Three BJP local leaders– Shivnath Choudhary, Sonu Sinha and Robin Keshri– had surrendered before the court on Friday after they were accused of anti-Muslim violence.

    Days before, Bajrang Dal convenor of Nalanda district, Kundan Kumar, involved in Hindutva violence in Bihar Sharif town, surrendered before the police after the authorities started property attachment of his house.

  • Madhya Pradesh: After 110 days, main accused in Khargone communal violence held

    By Express News Service

    BHOPAL: The main accused in communal violence during a Ram Navami procession in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone city was arrested on Sunday, over three months after the incident, police said Sunday.

    Shamiullah Khan (30), a native of Kamharwadi-Mohan Talkies area of Khargone, was arrested from the border of Khargone and Dhar districts on Sunday.

    A listed goon under the Khargone Kotwali police station, he has been accused in at least 10 cases, including attempt to murder, abduction and attack on government servants as well as the April 10 violence.

    Acting on specific intelligence inputs, the man on the run was tracked and nabbed from Dhar-Khargone district border.

    Carrying a bounty of Rs 10,000 on his head in connection with the April 10 violence, Shamiulaah was on the run since then. The Khargone district administration had invoked the National Security Act (NSA) against him. He had been externed from the district in the past.

    As per the NSA warrant issued against him, Shamiullah was sent to jail in Indore, after his arrest on Sunday.

    “He has been arrested in connection with the NSA warrant issued against him and has been sent to jail. The Khargone police will seek his police remand and grill him in connection with the April 10 arson and violence case registered against him as well as his possible linkages to other cases pertaining to the Ram Navami communal violence,” Khargone SP Dharnaveer Singh said.

    Shamiullah was also running a shadow outfit MIM.

    In an ongoing probe, it is believed that he was the prime mastermind behind the large scale arson and violence in Kamharwadi-Mohan Talkies area, which was the epicentre of the April 10 violence.

    Stone pelting had occurred during a Ram Navami procession in Khargone on April 10, leading to clashes between two communities and arson.

    One person (hailing from the minority community) was killed and over three dozen others, including then Khargone district police superintendent Siddharth Chaudhary were injured in the acts of communal violence that continued all throughout Ram Navami night.

    Indefinite curfew which was imposed on the entire municipal limits of Khargone town was lifted after 22 days.

    Around 90 cases were registered in connection with the Ram Navami communal violence and over 185 persons have been arrested in connection with various cases.

    BHOPAL: The main accused in communal violence during a Ram Navami procession in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone city was arrested on Sunday, over three months after the incident, police said Sunday.

    Shamiullah Khan (30), a native of Kamharwadi-Mohan Talkies area of Khargone, was arrested from the border of Khargone and Dhar districts on Sunday.

    A listed goon under the Khargone Kotwali police station, he has been accused in at least 10 cases, including attempt to murder, abduction and attack on government servants as well as the April 10 violence.

    Acting on specific intelligence inputs, the man on the run was tracked and nabbed from Dhar-Khargone district border.

    Carrying a bounty of Rs 10,000 on his head in connection with the April 10 violence, Shamiulaah was on the run since then. The Khargone district administration had invoked the National Security Act (NSA) against him. He had been externed from the district in the past.

    As per the NSA warrant issued against him, Shamiullah was sent to jail in Indore, after his arrest on Sunday.

    “He has been arrested in connection with the NSA warrant issued against him and has been sent to jail. The Khargone police will seek his police remand and grill him in connection with the April 10 arson and violence case registered against him as well as his possible linkages to other cases pertaining to the Ram Navami communal violence,” Khargone SP Dharnaveer Singh said.

    Shamiullah was also running a shadow outfit MIM.

    In an ongoing probe, it is believed that he was the prime mastermind behind the large scale arson and violence in Kamharwadi-Mohan Talkies area, which was the epicentre of the April 10 violence.

    Stone pelting had occurred during a Ram Navami procession in Khargone on April 10, leading to clashes between two communities and arson.

    One person (hailing from the minority community) was killed and over three dozen others, including then Khargone district police superintendent Siddharth Chaudhary were injured in the acts of communal violence that continued all throughout Ram Navami night.

    Indefinite curfew which was imposed on the entire municipal limits of Khargone town was lifted after 22 days.

    Around 90 cases were registered in connection with the Ram Navami communal violence and over 185 persons have been arrested in connection with various cases.

  • Sickening to see violence against Muslims celebrated in India: Padma Lakshmi

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Asserting that there is no threat to Hinduism in India or anywhere else, Indian American supermodel and author Padma Lakshmi on Wednesday said people of all faiths should be able to live peacefully in “this ancient, vast land”.

    The 51-year-old, who posted a series of tweets, said there is “widespread anti-Muslim” rhetoric in the country and hoped Hindus don’t succumb to “this fear-mongering” and “propaganda”.

    Fellow Hindus, don’t succumb to this fear-mongering. There is no threat to Hinduism in India or anywhere else. True spirituality doesn’t include any room for sowing hatred of any kind.People of all faiths should be able to live peacefully together in this ancient, vast land.
    — Padma Lakshmi (@PadmaLakshmi) April 27, 2022
    Tagging news articles from international publications like The Guardian and Los Angeles Times on Delhi’s Jahangirpuri clash between two communities during a Hanuman Jayanti procession and the violence in Khargone city of Madhya Pradesh during Ram Navami celebrations earlier this month, Lakshmi said “true spirituality” has no place for hatred.

    “Sickening to see the violence against Muslims celebrated in India. The widespread anti-Muslim rhetoric preys on fear and poisons people. This propaganda is dangerous and nefarious because when you consider someone less than it’s much easier to participate in their oppression,” she wrote.

    The New York-based “Top Chef” star said all faiths should live together peacefully. “Fellow Hindus, don’t succumb to this fear-mongering. There is no threat to Hinduism in India or anywhere else. True spirituality doesn’t include any room for sowing hatred of any kind. People of all faiths should be able to live peacefully together in this ancient, vast land,” she tweeted.

    The Jahangirpuri violence, which erupted on April 16, left eight police personnel and a local resident injured. Almost a week later, a ‘Tiranga Yatra’ was taken out by Hindu and Muslim residents of the area to give a message of peace and harmony.

  • Sickening to see violence against Muslims celebrated in India: Indian American actress Padma Lakshmi

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Asserting that there is no threat to Hinduism in India or anywhere else, Indian American supermodel and author Padma Lakshmi on Wednesday said people of all faiths should be able to live peacefully in “this ancient, vast land”.

    The 51-year-old, who posted a series of tweets, said there is “widespread anti-Muslim” rhetoric in the country and hoped Hindus don’t succumb to “this fear-mongering” and “propaganda”.

    Fellow Hindus, don’t succumb to this fear-mongering. There is no threat to Hinduism in India or anywhere else. True spirituality doesn’t include any room for sowing hatred of any kind.People of all faiths should be able to live peacefully together in this ancient, vast land.
    — Padma Lakshmi (@PadmaLakshmi) April 27, 2022
    Tagging news articles from international publications like The Guardian and Los Angeles Times on Delhi’s Jahangirpuri clash between two communities during a Hanuman Jayanti procession and the violence in Khargone city of Madhya Pradesh during Ram Navami celebrations earlier this month, Lakshmi said “true spirituality” has no place for hatred.

    “Sickening to see the violence against Muslims celebrated in India. The widespread anti-Muslim rhetoric preys on fear and poisons people. This propaganda is dangerous and nefarious because when you consider someone less than it’s much easier to participate in their oppression,” she wrote.

    The New York-based “Top Chef” star said all faiths should live together peacefully. “Fellow Hindus, don’t succumb to this fear-mongering. There is no threat to Hinduism in India or anywhere else. True spirituality doesn’t include any room for sowing hatred of any kind. People of all faiths should be able to live peacefully together in this ancient, vast land,” she tweeted.

    The Jahangirpuri violence, which erupted on April 16, left eight police personnel and a local resident injured. Almost a week later, a ‘Tiranga Yatra’ was taken out by Hindu and Muslim residents of the area to give a message of peace and harmony.

  • Spurt in violence in India part of larger BJP conspiracy, alleges Yechury

    By Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: The general secretary of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) Sitaram Yechury on Thursday alleged that communal tactics are being employed by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to divert people’s attention from the failure of the Central government in multiple spheres including combating rising prices and unemployment.

    Referring to the spate of communal incidents across states, he said that these incidents are part of a larger conspiracy hatched by the Government to destroy the social fabric and constitutional arrangement in India.

    “The ruling party is inciting this violence and hatred. There is a great conspiracy behind this; conspiracy against humanity and the constitution. Attempts are being made to destroy the constitution. We haven’t seen such barbarism in the last 75 years since independence and beyond. Eid and Ramnavmi were celebrated together but this kind of violence, hatred and bloodshed never existed before. It is being executed in a planned manner, which has the backing of the ruling party and the Government,” said Yechury.

    EDITORIAL | Selective demolitions bring no glory to the nation

    He was speaking at a protest jointly organised by the Left parties — CPI (M), CPI, CPI (Marxist–Leninist), Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), All India Forward Bloc (AIFB) — at Jantar Mantar against the ‘targeted’ demolition drive in Jahangirpuri by the North Delhi Municipal Corporation (North DMC) after communal clashes during the Hanuman Jyanti procession.

    The Left parties alleged that the demolition drive was part and parcel of the nefarious design to create communal tension in the area. Hundreds of people participated in the protest.

    Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Brinda Karat and CPI-ML’s politburo member Kavita Krishnan were also present during the protest.

    Yechury said that this (protest) is the beginning. Left parties would hold demonstrations across the country against divisive fascist politics.

    The CPI (M) leader further stated that the silence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi despite the violation of laws is surprising.

    “PM doesn’t say a word. The character of the country is being altered. Condemning the violence is one thing but it has to be stopped; prevention is necessary,” said Yechury.

    He also criticized the Government for the continuous rise in petrol and diesel prices. Yechury said that instead of asking the governments of non-BJP governed states, the Central government should scrap central excise duties on petroleum products to control their prices.  

    ALSO READ | ‘Centre devoured Rs 26 lakh crore from fuel prices but they blame states’: Stalin, PTR hit back

    “The BJP and RSS are creating an environment of hate in the name of removing encroachments in Delhi. We have seen this happening in Jahangirpuri and now they are planning to conduct such activities at other locations in Delhi. We are demanding the government to end such practices,” said the secretary of CPI (ML) Delhi Ravi Rai.

  • Man accused of firing at SP during Khargone violence held; curfew relaxed for nine hours

    By PTI

    KHARGONE: Police have arrested a man, who is accused of firing at Superintendent of Police (SP) Siddharth Chaudhary during the recent violence in Khargone city of Madhya Pradesh, an official said.

    Meanwhile, the local administration on Saturday relaxed the curfew in Khargone for nine hours at a stretch – from 8 am to 5 pm.

    “The accused, identified as Mohsin aka Waseem, has been arrested in the case of firing at SP Siddharth Chaudhary in Sanjay Nagar area of Khargone during the April 10 violence,” Inspector General (IG) of Police Nimar Zone, Tilak Singh, said.

    ALSO READ | Encroachment made by Khargone riot-accused won’t be razed without due legal process: Madhya Pradesh government to HC

    A police team arrested Mohsin on Friday from Kasrawad police station area, he said.

    Four criminal cases were already registered against Mohsin, including those related to the sale of illegal arms and assault, Singh said.

    “Police will interrogate the accused to collect information about his accomplices,” he said.

    Khargone SP Siddharth Choudhary is currently on leave as he is undergoing treatment after sustaining a bullet injury in his leg.

    Communal clashes had erupted in Khargone city on Ram Navami on April 10, during which shops and houses were damaged, vehicles torched and stones hurled.

    The curfew in Khargone city was relaxed for nine hours in one go on Saturday from 8 am to 5 pm, officials said.

    The curfew was clamped after the violence.

    But since April 14, the local administration has been relaxing the curfew for intervals of two hours.

    On Wednesday it was relaxed for six hours.

    As per the order, the curfew relaxation will not be applicable to the local agricultural market, petrol pumps and for the sale of kerosene from Public Distribution System (PDS) shops.

    During the curfew relaxation period, shops selling milk, vegetables, medicines, and barber’s shops among others, are allowed to remain open, but religious places have been asked to be kept shut. 

  • Ram Navami violence: Madhya Pradesh Police arrest five, three on run for lone murder of Ibarish Khan

    BHOPAL: Five men, two of them involved in communal violence in the past too, have been arrested by police in connection with the April 10-11 brutal killing of Ibarish Khan in communal riot hit Khargone town of Madhya Pradesh.

    The late night killing remains so far the lone killing of the April 10 Khargone communal violence, which caused injuries to over three dozen, people 10-12 cops. According to Khargone in-charge SP Rohit Kashwani, the five men arrested for allegedly killing Ibarish Khan alias Saddam are residents of Anand Nagar-Rahimpura communally sensitive locality.

    “The arrested men, who have confessed to the crime, have also been identified by the eye witnesses to the crime. The arrested men have told the police about committing the crime out of religious frenzy,” Kashwani said on Thursday late night.

    ALSO READ| MP violence: Chouhan directs police to submit action plan for robust intelligence system

    The arrested men have been identified as Dilip, Sandeep, Ajay Karma, Ajay Solanki and Dipak Pradhan. Three other accused are on the run, police sources in Khargone confided to The New Indian Express. According to key sources in Khargone police, two of the arrested men, have been involved in cases of communal violence in Khargone in the past.

    The investigation based on grilling of the arrested men has revealed that there was a clash between two communities in the communally sensitive Anand Nagar area on April 10 night.

    A group of men attacked the house of one Vicky Gaglani in Anand Nagar area late on April 10 night — a few hours after the communal violence was triggered by attack on Ram Navami procession in Talab Chowk area.

    Vicky and his aides subsequently retaliated chasing the group of the other community men, who had attacked his house with petrol bombs and stones. They caught hold of the local municipality staff, 28-year-old Ibarish Khan alias Saddam, who hailed from the neighbouring Islampura locality.

    Catching Ibarish alone, the eight men took him to the adjacent Kapas Mandi locality and brutally murdered him. Importantly, Ibarish (who as per kin had gone to Anand Nagar mosque on April 10 evening) was found dead in Kapas Mandi area at around 1:30 am on April 11.

    ALSO READ| Ram Navami violence: NSA invoked against two persons in Khargone

    His family had lodged a missing person report with the local police on April 14 morning, around 12 hours before lodging the murder  case of an unidentified man, as his identity wasn’t established by then. Four days later, his brother Iqhlak was called by police to identify the body preserved in the deep freezer of Indore’s MY Hospital. Finally the murder of Ibarish Khan was reported on April 18 early morning.

  • Ram Navami violence: NSA invoked against two persons in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone

    By PTI

    BHOPAL/ KHARGONE: The local administration has invoked the stringent National Security Act (NSA) against two persons allegedly involved in the violence that erupted during a Ram Navami procession in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone city, an official said on Tuesday.

    Khargone SP Rohit Kashwani said that the NSA was invoked against Nawaz, a resident of Talab Chowk area and Mohsin alias Nati, resident of Jakaria Masjid area, for alleged involvement in the April 10 violence, in-charge.

    He said that as many as 153 persons have been arrested and 65 First Information Reports (FIRs) registered in connection with the violence. Kashwani urged people to help police identify the culprits. Stone-pelting took place during a Ram Navami procession in the city on April 10, leading to clashes and arson.

    Among the injured was former SP Siddharth Choudhary who was hit by a bullet.

    Meanwhile, Madhya Pradesh Addl Chief Secretary (Home) Rajesh Rajora and Addl DGP (STF)Vipin Maheshwari visited Khargone on Tuesday and held meetings with members of both the Hindu and Muslim communities.

    They also inspected riot-hit areas including Aurangpura, Talab Chowk, Sanjay Nagar, Mohan Talkies, Bhatwadi, Sarafa Bazaar and met the those affected by the violence. The victims will get help and action will be taken against the rioters, the officials assured.

    The Madhya Pradesh government has announced aid of Rs one crore for providing relief to the people affected by the violence. The Khargone administration on Tuesday relaxed the curfew in the city from 8 am to 12 noon and from 3 pm to 5 pm. “The administration had conducted a survey and sent a report to the state government which has allotted Rs one crore for relief,” said district collector Anugraha P.

    Based on this survey, financial assistance will be provided immediately to the affected people and vendors whose houses, shops and vehicles were damaged in the violence, the collector said. Only the stores selling milk, vegetables and medicines were allowed to remain open during the relaxation of curfew.

    A government order said that people can purchase essential items from the shops in their neighbourhood. Petrol pumps will remain closed and the sale of kerosene will remain suspended at fair price shops, it added.

  • Ram Navami violence: Maharashtra cops collecting details of incidents; at least 20 cases registered

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: Maharashtra police have started collecting details of untoward incidents that took place during Ram Navami, which was celebrated across the state on April 10, and are taking action accordingly, a senior official said on Tuesday.

    At least 20 cases were registered statewide in connection to Ram Navami incidents, he said. He said that police had issued instructions to people to celebrate the occasion by following noise pollution norms and ensuring communal amity, adding that the untoward incidents include those connected to noise pollution and flouting of time limits.

    “At 30 places, Hanuman Chalisa recitation was organised, and at least five offences have been registered against individuals and mobs in connection with them,” he added.

  • Ram Navami violence: Gujarat cops have booked innocent people, says AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi

    By PTI

    AHMEDABAD: AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi on Thursday alleged that the men whom the Gujarat police have booked for allegedly attacking a Ram Navami procession in Khambhat town were innocent as they were performing namaz when the incident took place.

    Speaking on the communal clashes in Himmatnagar and Khambhat towns that took place following altercations during Ram Navami processions on March 10, Owaisi said the BJP-led state government failed to maintain law and order.

    “A Gujarat AIMIM (All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen) team had visited Khambhat town after the violence. They learnt that those who were booked by the police were busy offering namaz when the incident took place. And it was the state government’s responsibility to see that the procession passes off peacefully,” Owaisi told reporters here.

    “If you go through the past inquiry reports on such incidents, it was written that violence will take place if the state wants it and violence will never take place if the state does not. Hence, it was the state government that failed to establish law and order,” the Hyderabad MP said.

    Owaisi was in Gujarat to take stock of the state unit of the party’s preparedness for the upcoming Assembly polls to be held in December this year. “I am of the opinion that action must be taken against the guilty. But there should not be a media trial, because it is shown that stones were hurled by the people of the minority community. Show it if there is concrete evidence. Otherwise, a media trial must not happen,” he added.

    On Wednesday, police in Anand district had said that communal violence in Khambhat town on Ram Navami was a “pre-planned conspiracy” hatched by a “sleeper module” to achieve the dominance of Muslim community in the town.

    Police have already arrested 11 persons for their alleged involvement in hatching the conspiracy of the violence.

    Anand district SP Ajit Rajian had said that the perpetrators had planned to attack the procession and spread violence with the aim to teach the members of Hindu community a lesson to not take out any such procession in the future.

    A senior citizen was killed and another injured in the violence which broke out after a Ram Navami procession came under attack on Sunday. On the same day, similar clashes erupted in Himmatnagar town of Sabarkantha district.