Video screengrab of the Ram Navami rally in Nepal’s Janakpur.
Mon 03 Apr 2023:
Communal tensions surrounding Ram Navami rallies were seen for the first time in Nepal, according to a detailed report by BBC Hindi.
The news comes as violence continues in various parts of India as a direct aftermath of communal clashes during Ram Navami rallies, starting from March 31.
The BBC Hindi report says that saffron-clad people participating in a rally at Janakpur in Nepal, “created ruckus” near a local mosque which is situated close to a temple. Kashi Dahal, chief district officer of Janakpur, told the outlet that the rally was taken out by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad.
This is from Janakpur,Nepal.
Hindu Extremists mob shouted Jai Sri Ram in front of Jama Masjid in ward number 6, and stones were pelted at Reza Mosque in ward number 23 on the occasion of Ram Navami. pic.twitter.com/PgIUWBkYsk
— Md Asif Khan (@imMAK02) April 1, 2023
I have received some video clips form Janakpur pic.twitter.com/hYnh6jUCRv
— rajnish (@Rajnishjourna) March 30, 2023
The back and forth sloganeering took place at the Lado Bela Road in Janakpur which has a Muslim settlement. Both Hindu and Muslim communities became aggressive, the report said, quoting locals. As police arrived, the saffron-clad men fled, it was reported. Members of the Bajrang Dal, who appeared subsequently, were chased away by police. Amidst this, there were clashes too, according to the report.
A video released by a Muslim man describing the clash and using a slur for the Hindu community has meanwhile gone viral.
Nepal Communal tension: For the first time communal tension on Ram Navami in Nepal, why?
👉 https://t.co/ntELks37Bp@RazaGraphy @abhisar_sharma @sakshijoshii @PragyaLive @ravishndtv @thelivetvnews @newsclickin pic.twitter.com/l8tGLqjE51— Aijaz Bin ishaq (@AijazAwalqi) April 1, 2023
BBC Hindi spoke to both Muslim and Hindu community members. While the former noted that this had never happened in Nepal before, the latter claimed Muslims had started the stone-pelting.
Communal tussles were seen in Nepal’s Birgunj too, according to the report.
Both Janakpur and Birgunj are in the Madhes region, which hosts most of the country’s very small Muslim population. ‘Madhes‘ is the name for the flatlands of southern Nepal bordering India. Nepal was a Hindu country until 2008 after which it became secular.
-The Wire
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