Communal misdeeds gain steam after NDA return

Bengaluru/New Delhi, NT Bureau: At least seven persons, including six Muslim men and a Christian woman, have been killed in communal incidents since the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) came back to power on June 4.

Excuses for the four lynchings of Muslim men have varied from alleged cow slaughter to theft. Other acts of violence directed at the Muslims have included home demolitions and looting of a shop.

Violence also marred Bakr Eid celebrations in many states. Former IAS officer and activist Harsh Mander has said that the Opposition should break its silence on the targeting of minorities.

“The portents, therefore, for Modi’s third term are still not so hopeful. The clouds of hate and fear that had begun to clear on June 4 are fast gathering again. This is a time of critical test for the political opposition, of the mettle of their political and moral courage to defend the soul of India’s constitution,” Mander wrote for Scroll.

UP: Scrap dealer done to death

In the latest lynching over alleged theft, one Firoz Qureshi was beaten to death in UP’s Shamli city on Thursday. Firoz, a scrap dealer, had gone to the Jalalabad area of Ganga Aryanagar for work around 5 pm.

While there, he was accused of theft and beaten to death by a mob. The kin of the deceased took his body to the local police station and demanded action.

Cops assured them a First Information Report (FIR) was registered, but no arrests have been made so far.

Gujarat: Bloodbath at cricket match

On June 22, one Salman Vohra (23) was beaten to death with bats and stabbed with knives during a local cricket match. A parking dispute was cited as the flash point in Chikhodra village of Anand district during the cricket match.

A group of drunken men demanded that Salman remove his vehicle and when he refused, they returned with four to five more men and attacked Salman and his friend Suhail.

Soon, the mob swelled to around 5,000 people who beat up the duo and another Muslim man. Autopsy reports reveal that Salman was stabbed in the kidney, which led to his death.

Moreover, one of his ears was nearly completely bitten off. The two other victims were severely injured. Scores have been charged and arrested, but the kin of the deceased say many roam free.

Aligarh: Hockey sticks as murder weapons

On June 18, a Muslim man was killed by about a dozen men in Aligarh, UP. Farid alias Aurangzeb (35) was allegedly mistaken for a thief when he entered the house of a trader Mukesh Chand Mittal in the ‘Mamu-Bhanja’ locality by mistake.

The victim is said to have been beaten by Mittal’s neighbours with hockey sticks. He was rushed to the Malkhan Singh Hospital where he was declared brought dead.

As many as seven people were booked in the case and six were arrested. However, the deceased and eight others were booked for dacoity after the mother of an accused filed a complaint.

Chhattisgarh: Cattle transport proves fatal

Saddam Qureshi who hailed from Shamli district in Uttar Pradesh succumbed to his injuries at a hospital in Mahasamund district in Chhattisgarh.

He, along with two other men, Chand Miyan and Guddu Khan, from Saharanpur district were attacked by selfproclaimed vigilantes in Raipur district around 2 am on June 8 allegedly for transporting cattle.

Four men, including a BJP Youth Wing leader have been arrested in the case. Mishri Khan Jume Khan Baloch was set upon by Bajrang Dal-affiliated ‘gau rakshaks’ (cow vigilantes) when he was transporting two buffaloes after buying them from a market in Banaskantha district on May 23.

Cops have said that five have been booked and two arrested in the case.

MP: 11 homes destroyed

On June 16, 11 houses belonging to Muslims were demolished in Bhainswahi village of Mandla district, Madhya Pradesh.Tension began when beef was allegedly recovered from a local Muslim man.

On June 15, scores of cops arrived at the village and checked homes for beef and even took away refrigerators. The next day, the homes were bulldozed.

The authorities flip-flopped as the official Mandla Police Twitter said the homes were demolished due to cow slaughter while others claimed it was because the structures were built on government land.

Himachal: Shop looted over sacrifice pics

On June 19, a mob looted a Muslim man’s textile shop in Nahan town in Himachal Pradesh. The shop owner, Javed, is said to have shared pictures of animal sacrifice on the day of Bakr Eid (June 17).

The mob claimed it was a cow, but it turned out that it was a buffalo, which is “legal” for slaughter. More than a dozen Muslim shopkeepers left Nahan in the wake of the rioting.

Telangana: Clash over cow transport

On June 15, Medak city in Telangana experienced communal tension when Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) members stopped a vehicle transporting cows, triggering a clash.

The BJYM mob then went on to attack the Mihaj Ul Uloom Madarasa (seminary-cum-hostel for orphans) injuring children in the facility. A hospital was also attacked. BJP district president Gaddam Srinivas, party town president M Nayam Prasad and seven others have been arrested in the case.

Odisha: Riots mar Eid

On June 17, communal tension gripped Balasore city in Odisha over alleged cow slaughter. Some locals claimed they noticed water near a mausoleum in the Patrapada area turning red, leading to a clash followed by a week-long curfew.

Similar scenes unfolded in Khorda city in Odisha as mobs entered Muslim homes and made away with refrigerators claiming there was beef in them.