The protest against the desecration of Durga Mandir in Hauz Qazi, Delhi at the beginning of this month has taken a national turn. A peaceful protest against the temple vandalism was organised under the leadership of Hindu organisations on July 5 in Dehradun, Uttarakhand.
This peaceful protest had turned violent when a Muslim mob intercepted the procession and started mercilessly beating up the Hindus who were participating in the rally near the Inamulla building in Dehradun. The tension escalated when the police forcefully stopped the activists of the Hindu organisations, who were moving towards the building after they got the information of the incident. It was alleged that the police took no action against the miscreants.
Young activists of the Hindu organisation were beaten up by local Muslim mob near the Inamulla building, which is predominantly a Muslim dominated area. Tensions in the city prevailed throughout the day due to the controversy. The Muslims reportedly shouted provocative slogans, which the Hindu activists objected to. The peaceful rally which was named ‘pratirodh rally'(resistance rally) by the Hindu activists, turned unruly, as Muslim mob attacked the children and the elderly people participating in the rally. Apart from the violence, the mob also chanted slogans like ‘Allahu Akbar’.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zV_3yMlQayk]
Though this incident occurred two days earlier, the locals are still scared to talk about the incident. Few locals have alleged that contrary to what transpired, the police have lodged a complaint against the Hindus, who were actually at the receiving end. An activist named Rohit Maurya while speaking to OpIndia gave us snippets of the incident.
Rohit told our reporter that the incident transpired on July 5, when a mob of Muslims attacked the group of Hindu activists who were moving towards the parade ground to organise a peaceful rally against the Hauz Qazi temple vandalism and the killing of a Hindu youth in Uttrakhand by a Muslim man.
“Here an atmosphere of fear has arisen. A cleric named Qazi Riaz, in his statement, has said that if the Muslims are given a free hand they can go on a killing spree all over the country, we are here to oppose this sentiment of the Muslims“, said Rohit.
While speaking to us, Rohit blamed the police for whatever transpired. He alleged that the police were biased. “Despite having proper permission to carry out the rally, we were stopped by the police“, claimed Rohit. “Small children were also not spared, just because they were carrying saffron flags in their hands“, said Rohit, claiming that the police instead of apprehending the culprits have lodged complaints against the victims.
Opindia gathered videos wherein the Muslim mob can be seen attacking the Hindus near the Inamulla building in Dehradun. In the video, it can be clearly seen how the Muslim mob are pelting stones and using provocative slogans to incite the Hindus.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpmD9cO06nA]
Opindia got in touch with some locals of the area. Most of the people are scared of talking about the incident. They fear that if they divulge any information and people come to know, they might be socially and economically boycotted from the area.
However, after talking to many people, what could be established was that the police are hesitant to take any sort of action against the Muslims in that area.
Moreover, talking about the video, Rohit furthered that though it can be clearly seen how the mob used screwdrivers, saws and knives to attack the Hindus, not even sparing the children. He alleged that the police stood like mute spectators and did not take an action against the mob. Rohit also alleged that the police is actually afraid to take action against the mob because they are afraid of the mob themselves.
He also accused the police of not letting them submit a memorandum to the district magistrate.
Another social activist also confirmed that the police are scared to act against such a mob which is why the anti-social elements in the area get a free hand to do whatever they want to. Though there have been many incidents in the past where miscreants were found guilty, the police have failed to take any action against them, alleged the social worker.
Though Uttarakhand CM, Trivender Singh Rawat has assured that no one would be permitted to take the law and order in their hands, the Hindu’s around the Inamulla building live in constant threat.
Unfortunately, this deplorable incident has not got enough media coverage. It is being believed that the media is also sceptical of delving into the issue because it may not further the narrative it is building.
However, what is disconcerting is that though everything is out in the open, the administration and the police do not seem to be taking appropriate action. The Hindus who are actually the victims of mob violence here are being projected as the culprits.
Nevertheless, the questions such vexing incidents evoke are: For how long will this apathy towards the Hindus last? For how long will a selective section of media smoke-screen such incident where Hindus are the ones facing the wrath? Until when will the Hindus be at the receiving end? Will the Hindu community be ever allowed to talk about their rights without it being given a ‘communal twist’? There remain many questions unanswered.
