POLICE FIRING IN INDIA’S SAMBHAL REGION HAS KILLED SEVERAL MUSLIMS PROTESTING A MOSQUE SURVEY

Mon 25 November 2024:

The death toll has risen to five as police fired on Muslims protesting the survey of Shahi Jama Masjid in Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal on Sunday.

Tensions erupted after locals resisted the court-ordered survey team, who were accompanied by a Hindutva mob chanting “Jai Shri Ram,” leading to clashes with the police.

The killed were identified as Naeem (28), Mohd Bilal Ansari (25), Noman, Ayaan, and Mohd Kaif (17).

Family members of the deceased alleged that their kin were killed in police firing. The killings have sparked outrage in the region.

Location : Sambhal, UP

Mother of deceased Naeem said that my child was shot by the police and after killing him, he was thrown aside.
Naeem has 4 small children, #Sambhal #SambhalJamaMasjid #SambhalMosque #SambhalViolence #jazeeranews #waahiidalikhan pic.twitter.com/TkkCOCfsRp

— Waahiid Ali Khan (@waahiidalikhan) November 25, 2024

The district administration has imposed prohibitory orders and paused the entry of outsiders till November 30. Internet services have been halted, and schools have been closed in the region.

Moradabad Divisional Commissioner Aunjaneya Kumar Singh said that three of the victims were killed after sustaining bullet injuries.

“Three men were killed, primarily due to bullet wounds,” said Moradabad Divisional Commissioner Aunjaneya Kumar Singh.

The incident took place when the local court-appointed commissioner and six members of his team entered the mosque for the second survey at around 7 am on Sunday. A purported video shows members of the survey team shouting slogans alongside a Hindutva group.

#Sambhal : A #Hindu mob was seen accompanying the survey officials, shouting “#JaiShreeRam” and other slogans, which led to unrest have surfaced on the social media Police officials were seen escorting the mob without any visible effort in the videos to intervene or stop them,… pic.twitter.com/lHMfPyRZOQ

— FOEJ Media (@FoejMedia) November 25, 2024

The first survey had been conducted on November 19.

The survey followed a court order based on a complaint by Hindutva groups alleging that the Mughals demolished a temple to build the historic mosque. Members of a Hindutva group accompanied the survey team, locals told Maktoob.

The survey, which followed a petition filed by senior advocate Vishnu Shanker Jain in the court of the civil judge in Sambhal, reportedly began on Tuesday evening, just hours after the court’s order.

The court had appointed lawyer Ramesh Raghav as the Advocate Commissioner to oversee the survey, which was carried out under the supervision of the District Magistrate and the Superintendent of Police.

The Jama Masjid is a 16th-century mosque from the Mughal era. The mosque, claimed to have been built on the directions of the first Mughal emperor Babar, is acknowledged as a “historic monument” on the official website of the Sambhal district.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav urged the Supreme Court to immediately “take cognizance of the conspiracy of spreading tension in the name of the survey.” He alleged that the BJP government and its administration “orchestrated the violence to divert attention from electoral malpractice.”

Commenting on the gruesome police violence, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said that the BJP government is directly responsible.

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https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaAtNxX8fewmiFmN7N22

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“The biased and hasty attitude of the state government on the recent dispute in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, is extremely unfortunate. My deepest condolences to those who lost their loved ones in the violence and firing. The administration’s insensitive action without listening to all parties further vitiated the situation and resulted in the death of many people – for which the BJP government is directly responsible.”

“BJP’s use of power to create rift and discrimination between Hindu-Muslim communities is neither in the interest of the state nor the country. I request the Supreme Court to intervene in this matter as soon as possible and provide justice. My appeal is to maintain peace and mutual harmony. We all have to join together to ensure that India moves forward on the path of unity and constitution, not communalism and hatred,” Gandhi said.

VIDEO | Sambhal violence: “The first thing is that the mosque in Sambhal is not 50-100 years old, but 200-250 years old. The court passed an ex-parte order regarding the mosque without hearing its caretakers, which is wrong. The violence that occurred there, where three Muslims… pic.twitter.com/XwzJiLwpBm

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) November 25, 2024

Hyderabad MP and AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has given an adjournment motion notice in Lok Sabha to discuss the issue of “killing of three youths in police firing in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh yesterday.”

In a statement, Congress media and publicity department chairman Pawan Khera said videos of the violence showed firing on protesters. “Western UP, which has been a symbol of goodwill and harmony for years, today witnessed three people killed and many injured under a well-planned conspiracy,” he said.

This article originally published in Maktoob Media click here