Hyderabad: Hyderabad MP and All India Majlis e Ittehad ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Asaduddin Owaisi on Thursday, June 13 questioned the growing instances of hate crimes against Muslims in the country, especially in Uttar Pradesh.
The MP questioned the timing of the atrocities and accused the Sangh Parivaar, an umbrella term for Hindu right-wing organisations, of seeking revenge for the BJP’s failure to secure a majority in forming the government.
As a surprise to many, the Samajwadi Party in the state swept several constituencies in Uttar Pradesh, formerly strongholds of the BJP. The BJP also lost its Faizabad seat to the party, home to the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. Despite forming the government with a majority for two terms, the Modi-led BJP government was forced to ally with its National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners to cross the majority of 272.
The INDIA alliance on the other hand was able to secure 234 seats with the Congress party leading the opposition with 99 seats.
“Two Maulanas were murdered in Uttar Pradesh, Muslim houses were bulldozed in Akbarnagar, two Muslims were lynched in Chhattisgarh. Is the Sangh Parivar taking revenge against Muslims?” questioned Adauddin Owaisi in a post, in Hindi, on X.
The AIMIM PM Asaduddin Owaisi was referring to two separate incidents where the Imams of two mosques in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad and Shamli were killed on Tuesday, June 11, days after the Lok Sabha Elections on June 4. However, there is no prima facie connection between the murders.
2 Muslim clerics murdered in Uttar Pradesh
The Imam of a mosque was shot dead by unidentified assailants on Tuesday morning in Bhensia Village of Moradabad District.
The assailants, apparently known to the deceased, first called him out of the mosque and then shot him dead from point-blank range.
The deceased Maulana Akram was a resident of Rampur District but was living in Bhensia Village for the last 15 years and was working in the local mosque. His body was discovered meters away from his house by residents of the area after he failed to appear for fajr prayers on the day.
In the second case, from Shamli, the body of the Muslim cleric was found beheaded in the jungle on Tuesday afternoon. However, the deceased son had been arrested by the police for interrogation and as an accused in the case.
Houses demolished in Akbarnagar
Asaduddin Owaisi was also referring to the ongoing demolitions of houses in Akbarnagar since December last year. Several houses dubbed as ‘illegal encroachment’ were demolished, leaving nearly 15,000 residents, a majority of whom are Muslims, in a state of despair.
According to officials, 45 structures on encroached land were demolished on Day 1. This is part of the government’s efforts to renovate the Kukrail River.
Residents of Akbarnagar watched with helplessness the demolition of their homes as the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) deemed them illegal structures on Monday, June 11. The demolition was carried out amid a heavy police presence.
The order complied with the Gomti Riverfront Project sanctioned by the Yogi government in 2016 which aims to beautify the riverbed across the state capital.
Muslim men lynched to death in Chattisgarh
Two Muslim men were found dead after allegedly being chased by cow vigilantes while transporting cattle in Chhattisgarh’s Raipur district on Friday, May 7. A third person was found critically injured.
According to reports, the bodies of the deceased – Guddu Khan, 35, and Chand Miya Khan, 23 – were found lying below the rocks while the third person – Saddam Qureshi, 23 – is battling between life and death. Chand Miya and Qureshi were cousins and residents of Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh while Guddu Khan hailed from Shamli district, UP.
The police officer refused to comment when asked if it was a case of mob lynching. “We are checking the CCTV footage. Efforts are being made to identify those who chased the trio. We cannot say anything now,” he said.
