The procession began peacefully. As they marched through the streets of Delhi’s Jahangirpuri district on Saturday, worshipers had gathered to celebrate the Hanuman Jayanti Hindu festival. But the peace did not last long. As evening approached, an unauthorized parade began to gather. This time, men dressed in saffron, the characteristic color of Hindu nationalism, filled the streets, brandishing swords and pistols, and began shouting provocative municipal slogans.
Ignoring previous agreements between Hindus and Muslims about the march to avoid passing a local mosque, they rushed to it.
A Hindu mob smashed bottles of beer in the mosque, put saffron flags there and chanted Jai Sri Ram [Hail Lord Ram]”Said Tabriz Khan, 39, a witness. “An employee of the mosque began to resist them, which led to a fight. It was only after they started desecrating the mosque that the Muslims became angry and clashes and stones were thrown. “
It was a story confirmed by both Muslim and Hindu witnesses. Rinku Sharma, a Hindu participant in the march, said the clashes began “when we entered the mosque area”.
“Most of the people living in the area are Muslims,” said Mohammad Fazal, 35. “It was not a religious rally, but an attack on us [Muslims]”
Six police officers were injured in the violence, and more than 20 people were arrested, most of them Muslims. But among those arrested was the leader of the local branch of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), a well-known right-wing organization. “There was no incitement, it seems that the attack was planned to create tension in the community,” Khan added.
Delhi Police Commissioner Rakesh Astana said people from the “two communities” were being investigated. “Action will be taken against any person found guilty, regardless of class, faith, community or religion,” he said.
Saffron flags lie in front of a mosque the day after public clashes in Jahangirpuri, Delhi. Photo: Rishi Lekhi / AP
The events in Jahangirpuri were far from isolated. Over the weekend, nearly 140 people were arrested in connection with incidents of community violence and riots between Hindus and Muslims in Utarakhand, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka during Hanuman Jayanti celebrations.
A similar story was in previous weeks. Celebrations at the Ram Nawami Hindu festival in seven states near Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Jharkhand and West Bengal have been marred by public violence, mainly against Ramadan Muslims. Clashes killed one person, setting fire to or demolishing dozens of Muslim homes and shops, provocative slogans shouted in front of many mosques and attempts to place saffron flags in Muslim places of worship.
Rising violence in the community has caused concern among many in India, who fear the country is becoming more polarized than ever in the Hindu-Muslim line. For many, the blame lies with the ruling Hindu nationalist party, Bharatiya Janata, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The BJP has been accused of overseeing a religiously divisive agenda and inciting hostility towards India’s 200 million Muslims by taking them to second-class citizens. Meanwhile, Hindu vigilantes such as the VHP were allowed to work freely and increasingly began to take matters into their own hands.
A supporter wears a Narendra Modi mask during a road show in support of the state elections in Allahabad, India. Photo: Ritesh Shukla / Getty Images
In the southern state of Telangana, BJP lawmaker Raja Singh was among those accused of provocative slogans during a march.
“It has to be proven that we are going through the most difficult phase for Muslims in independent India,” said Asim Ali, a political researcher at the think tank at the Center for Political Studies, according to the Telegraph, an Indian newspaper. “Being the target of the country’s dominant party is a bad place for the community, and the Hindu nationalist stance on Muslims seems to be becoming more hostile over time.
The wave of violence in recent weeks, Ali added, is proof that “this anti-Muslim mobilization … has also gained momentum.”
In Muzafarpur, a district of Bihar, Muslims say a saffron flag was hoisted at the entrance to a mosque during one of the marches. Videos show the crowd applauding and brandishing swords and hockey sticks as the flag was raised.
But it was in Hargon, a district of Madhya Pradesh, that some of the worst clashes took place. The violence began when a parade of Ram Nawami with about 5,000 worshipers passed by a mosque. A confrontation between Hindus and Muslims is said to have erupted after inciting Hindu nationalist slogans and threats began to be shouted at by hardline Hindus and stones thrown in revenge. Local Muslims say their homes have been destroyed and about 10 have been set on fire.
“I was at home with my family preparing to break Ramadan when a large mob started attacking our house,” said Farooq Khan, 23. “They were shouting. [kill the Muslims]”
Khan said he had to beg the mob with a sword, who entered his house and began looting, to allow him and his family to escape. About 24 people were injured in the violence, including a police officer.
Muslims in Hargon have accused police of refusing to prosecute Hindus involved in the violence and instead arrest mostly Muslims. There was also discontent after the local administration demolished at least 16 houses and 29 shops belonging to Muslims accused of throwing stones at the march.
Nawab Khan, a Muslim whose house was also set on fire, said he was beaten by police when he tried to report to the station, showing back wounds he said were caused by officials. “Our property has been set on fire, we have been attacked and we are the ones accused and punished,” he said.
Subt Shalendra Singh denied that Muslims were mainly targeted and said police were taking appropriate action against all communities involved.
Indian security officials detained Jawaharlal Nehru students while protesting against the hijab restriction in February. Photo: Raja T Gupta / EPA
Clashes erupted in early April in Karauli, Rajasthan, as a Hindu procession passed through a Muslim area and about 70 shops, mostly owned by Muslims, were set on fire. The violence this month even reached one of India’s best universities, Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi, after right-wing Hindu activists objected to cooking non-vegetarian food in a dormitory.
Over the weekend, leaders of 13 opposition parties condemned Modi for keeping quiet over rising violence. “We are shocked by the silence of the prime minister, who has failed to speak out against the words and actions of those who promote bigotry and those who incite and provoke our society with their words and actions,” the statement said.
Modi’s Minister for Minorities, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, accused the events of the past few weeks of “strange elements that … are trying to slander India’s inclusive culture and commitment”.
People are protesting in Delhi against hate speech following a religious gathering of Hindu holy figures in Utarakhand. Photo: Mayank Makhija / NurPhoto / REX / Shutterstock
Activists and academics point to increasingly violent rhetoric against Muslims infiltrating India, fueling tensions in the community to dangerous levels. In December 2021, a religious meeting of Hindu holy figures was held in Haridwar, Utarakhand, during which speakers called for genocide against Muslims. Last week, police arrested Bajrang Muni Das, a Hindu priest, accused of threatening to rape Muslim women en masse during a speech two weeks ago in the presence of officials.
The attacks also come after the adoption of state legislation accused of discriminating against Muslims, including a ban on hijabs in schools in the BJP-run Karnataka.
Writing in the Indian Express over the weekend, opposition congressional leader Sonia Gandhi said: “Apocalypse of hatred, bigotry, intolerance and lies is engulfing our country today.” in front of the altar of false nationalism. “
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