A fight over the statues of two famous men has occurred at Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain. A group of Bhim Army workers attacked and toppled a statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel with the intention of erecting a statue of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar in its position. This led to a confrontation between the Bhim Army and Patidar Samaj (community) which later escalated to stone-pelting and arson.
The event transpired in the Makdone area which is roughly 50 miles from the district headquarters on 25th January, when members of Bhim Army and Patidar Samaj came face to face near the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The statue was placed close to the Makdone bus stand late on the night of 24th January. Bhim Army workers ran a tractor over the Patel statue, and toppled it. The statue was also attacked by stones, sticks and rods. The group who toppled the statue wanted to erect of statue of B. R. Ambedkar in its place.
This created a massive fight between the two sides, who attacked each other. Iron rods were used, stones were hurled and the furious mob also vandalised vehicles as well as shops. A few cars were burned by them. With the deteriorating situation, Ujjain Additional Superintendent of Police (rural) Nitesh Bhargava arrived at the scene accompanied by cops from Tarana, Makdone and Ujjain police stations. The matter was pacified after talking to both sides.
The police revealed that there is a plot of vacant land in the village between Mandi Gate and the bus stop where someone put an idol of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, which angered the members of the Bhim Army. The latter assembled on the 25th of January morning and used a tractor to remove the statue. As a result, the Patidar community’s members also descended at the location which led to the violence.
The official informed, “No one has reported to us about it so far. An additional police force has been deployed. The situation is completely under control. We have removed the stones that were hurled by (members of) the two communities from the spot in the Makdone area.” According to him, no prohibitory order barring the gathering of persons has been issued as of yet.
“A statue of a great personality installed near Krishi Upaj Mandi square under Makdone police station by people of a group was vandalised by the people of another group on Thursday morning. After which a clash broke out between the two groups on the spot,” disclosed Guru Prasad Parashar, Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP).
Makadon police station in-charge Bhim Singh Deora has been suspended for gross negligence in the matter. Sub Inspector Lalchand Sharma who was injured in the incident is undergoing treatment. The collector and Superintendent of Police also rushed to the spot after the instance. Things are under control at the moment.
Notably, there is reportedly an empty lot close to Krishi Upaj Mandi and members of both parties have been clamouring for the installation of statues honouring the two historical figures. Now, the Panchayat is deliberating over the issue.
After the police arrived, the calmed the situation and brought the situation under control. Now, police personnel have taken over the entire neighbourhood to maintain law and order.
उज्जैन के मकड़ोंन क्षेत्र में सरदार वल्लभ भाई पटेल की प्रतिमा को ट्रैक्टर से तोड़ा गया। दो पक्ष आमने-सामने हुए, पथराव भी, तनाव की स्थिति pic.twitter.com/ygl9MYRcsj
— SanjayGupta_Journalist (@sanjaygupta1304) January 25, 2024
Fake news peddled on the incident
Sandeep Singh, who is an ardent Congress supporter clad in the attire of a “Social Activist and Accidental Journalist,” tried to paint the incident with a communal colour. He alleged, “The statue of Sardar Patel is being removed amid the slogans of ‘Jai Shree Ram.’ This raises some serious concerns. If you want you can spread this video of ‘Ram Rajya’ and inform people that the slogan of ‘Jai Shri Ram’ is turning into a homicidal one.” Notably, he deleted the tweet after he was exposed for disseminating false news and creating trouble.
‘Hate Detector,’ a notoriously anti-Hindu and anti-Indian account known for spreading fake material, grabbed the opportunity to portray the issue as anti-Dalit and presented it through a caste lens. It claimed, “Patidars, associated with the ruling party, wanted to build a statue of Sardar Patel. On the other hand, Dalits want a statue of B R Ambedkar. When members of the Dalit community saw the statue of Sardar Patel on the disputed land, they tumbled it down. It was installed overnight on the alleged disputed land. Irked with it, both the communities confronted leading to stone pelting and arson.”
Clash erupted b/n members of #Dalits & #Patidar [#Patel] community in #MadhyaPradesh's #Ujjain last night.#Patidars, associated with the ruling party, wanted to build status of #SardarPatel. On the other hand Dalits want statue of #BRAmbedkar.
— Hate Detector 🔍 (@HateDetectors) January 25, 2024
When members of #Dalit community… pic.twitter.com/GTmnrTUp9I
Another person latched onto the misinformation and commented, “Vandals defaced the Sardar Patel statue while chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram.’ Anybody from whom this Godse clan might gain an advantage in the elections will be exploited. The great men will experience the same fate after that.”
जय श्री राम का नारा लगाते हुए सरदार पटेल की मूर्ति को तोड़ा गया।
— आलोचक✍️ (@Bihar_se_) January 25, 2024
ये गोडसे के वंश हर उस व्यक्ति का इस्तेमाल करेंगे जिनसे चुनाव में फायदा हो।
उसके के बाद यही हाल करेंगे महापुरुषों का।#Sardarpatel
pic.twitter.com/j4imcpKQih
As a matter of fact, the event was not at all related to Lord Ram nor is there evidence of any Jai Shri Ram slogans being chanted during the incident. There was no religious component to it and it was just a disagreement between two communities that was exploited as a pretext to attack Hindus.
Furthermore, there is no proof of affiliation between Patidars and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. On the other hand, the group that was simply depicted as “Dalit” were in reality political workers of self-proclaimed Ambedkarite Chandra Shekhar Aazad’s Bhim Party. More importantly, there are no reports that the land is under dispute. An attempt was made to stoke the flames, increase hostilities and target Hindus by the fake news peddlers.
