On Thursday, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath warned those spreading hate over the Israel-Palestine conflict, asserting that supporters of Hamas will not be spared. He firmly instructed state officials to deal with individuals attempting to incite hatred and provoke unrest concerning the Palestine matter amidst the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in West Asia.
In a law and order review meeting held at his Lucknow residence, the UP CM made it clear that any actions conflicting with the stance of the Government of India regarding this matter would not be tolerated, as reported by an official.
“The chief minister mandated that regardless of the platform—be it social media or any place of worship—no divisive statements should be made by anyone. If anyone attempts to spread malicious content, prompt and severe action should be taken against them,” the government spokesperson, privy to the meeting, said.
Adityanath additionally instructed the police and administrative heads of each district to engage with local religious leaders and convey this message to them.
The instructions from the Chief Minister follow closely after four students from Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) in the state were charged for reportedly organizing a demonstration in support of Palestine on the campus. Various political figures lodged complaints with the police, expressing their opposition to the pro-Palestine march on the university grounds. In response, AMU stated that they had initiated an internal investigation into the incident.
Since the previous Saturday, Hamas-led targeted assaults on Israeli civilians have resulted in the loss of 1,300 lives on the Israeli side, including deaths of babies, toddlers, and infants, some of whom have been brutally beheaded and burnt alive.
Following the Hamas attack on Israel the previous Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued a statement on platform X expressing his profound dismay at the “terrorist attacks” and affirmed, “We stand in unity with Israel during this challenging time.”
On Thursday, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) released its initial official statement regarding the Israel-Hamas conflict, asserting that there exists a “collective duty to uphold international humanitarian law.” In addition to this, it emphasised the global commitment to combat terrorism in all its diverse forms and expressions.
