On BJP IT cell’s complaint, a 26-year-old Muslim Congress activist from Madhya Pradesh was detained for eight months in Saudi Arabia. This happened after his photo with a placard of ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ in front of the grand mosque in Makkah that went viral in India on January 25, 2023.
Raza Kadri, the Congress youth leader of Madhya Pradesh’s Niwari district, had visited Makkah, accompanying his grandmother to the Umrah pilgrimage. He had availed services of an agent from Jhansi for the travel.
Unaware of Saudi rules
Raza recently revealed to The Print that in Makkah he had seen a group of people holding both the Indian flag and the Bharat Jodo Yatra flag. Unaware of Saudi rules, he took a picture of himself holding the banner with the Kaaba in the background.
Notably, displaying any type of flag or placard with political message is unlawful action in Saudi Arabia.
His picture was widely shared on social media platforms after Madhya Pradesh Youth Congress president Vikrant Bhuria also posted it on his X handle. However, Bhuriya didn’t know that his post would be used to placate Kardi as a ‘political agent’ and land him into trouble.
Soon after the photo went viral, a few men knocked on the door of the hotel room at 12:30 am where Raza was putting up. Raza initially thought that the men had come just to visit as they started asking him about his Umrah experience. “I told them that it was not the right time to talk, but they insisted and I stepped out with them. As soon as I came out, they twisted my arms and handcuffed me. They covered my face and I was taken a local police station,” Raza said.
At the police station, Raza was shown the viral photo and asked about his political affiliations. “Despite the language barrier, I made an effort to convey that the travel agent had not given me any information regarding the Saudi laws,” said Raza.
BJP involvement?
Raza was asked to furnish his credential details to prove his innocence. However, he was unable to reach his agent who had kept his passport and visa. Subsequently, Raza was shifted to Dhahban Central Prison near Jeddah where he allegedly received a harsh treatment.
Raza Kadri recalled he had to spent several nights in a dark and isolated cell. He said that he was given only two breads twice a day and would sometimes receive lashes.
According to Raza, when his mental health started deteriorating in the isolated dark cell after which he was taken to a psychiatrist on whose advice he was moved to another cell with other inmates.
Raza revealed that he learnt in the police station that he was taken to custody on a complaint of an X user ‘Hassan Khan’ who had tagged Saudi police officials in the viral picture. They also sought action against him for “using the holy site for political gains.”
Raza added that during interrogation, he came to know the Bharatiya Janata Party IT cell had allegedly flooded Saudi officials with malicious emails anonymously right after his detention. He was termed as as a ‘political agent’ and an enemy of the Saudi state, News click reported.
Unfortunately, Raza could not prove his innocence. The IT cell messages made Raza’s case more complicated. He was supposed to stay in Saudi for 20 days, but ended up spending 8 months in jail.
“It was a malicious lie to frame me,” said Raza.
Questioned like an ‘agent’
Recalling the horrific treatment in the dark cell, Raza said he was interrogated like an agent, and questioned about his connections to political organisations globally. “When they inquired about the BJP IT cell and their accusations, I learned about the malicious mail,” Raza said.
All this while, Kardi’s family in India had no idea where he was. The family didn’t know who to complain to or where to find him because none of them had ever been to Saudi Arabia.
The family members of Raza tried to contact the travel agent who had arranged Raza’s trip. However, he allegedly refused to share his documents. They wrote several letters and emails to the Indian embassy in Saudi Arabia, but in vain.
Raza’s release
After getting no response from the Saudi and Indian embassies, Raza’s family approached Digvijay Singh, a prominent Congress leader from Madhya Pradesh who was familiar with Raza’s viral image. Making efforts to release Raza, Singh wrote multiple letters to the Government of India (GOI) and the Indian embassy.
The investigating officer promised to secure his release after the six months of investigation revealed no evidence to support the malicious allegations against him. Later, his credentials were shared with Saudi authorities. “You’ll soon be free. Be prepared,” Kardi remembers an officer telling him.
Raza was finally released on October 3.
Meanwhile, tagging Congress senior leaders including Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, Digvijay Singh posted on X, “After writing several letters to the Government of India, this young man from Niwari MP was able to return with great difficulty.”
Raza said that right-wing users are still making efforts to tarnish his name for his affiliation with Congress. He claimed that Saudi authorities did not jail him just because of his ‘Bharat Jodo’ placard, but anonymous emails from BJP IT cell raised security concerns for Saudi authorities in his case
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