On 1st July, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi provoked fury in the Lok Sabha with his controversial remarks, forcing a rare intervention from Prime Minister Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Speaking in parliament, Gandhi claimed that individuals who identified as Hindus only talked about violence, bigotry, and lies, prompting Prime Minister Modi to interrupt.
“Those who call themselves Hindu only talk about violence, hatred, untruth,” Gandhi was quoted as saying. To this, PM Modi raised serious objection to Rahul Gandhi’s comments saying, “Calling the entire Hindu community violent is a very serious matter.”
Gandhi also showed Lord Shiva’s picture in the House after he attacked BJP saying Hinduism is not about spreading fear, hatred, and falsehoods. Further, he displayed placards featuring images of Guru Nanak and Jesus Christ. He was also carrying a placard featuring a quote from the Quran. “All our great men have spoken about non-violence and ending fear. But, those who call themselves Hindu only talk about violence, hatred, and untruth,” Gandhi said, adding, “Aap Hindu ho hi nahi.” (You are not a Hindu).
Union Minister Amit Shah meanwhile criticized Rahul Gandhi’s comment, insisting on an apology. “The Leader of the Opposition has clearly stated that those who identify as Hindu speak of and commit violence. He is unaware that millions proudly call themselves Hindu. Associating violence with any religion is wrong. He should apologize,” he stated.
Gandhi is known for making anti-India and anti-Hindu statements. However, this time he attempted to enrage the entire Hindu community by calling them violent. Gandhi seems to have selectively forgotten that several incidents have appeared in the recent past that have been committed by the Muslim community. It is the Islamists who deliberately target the Hindu community and harass them for belonging to a particular religion. Here are some of the instances reported from last week where Hindus have been deliberately targeted by the Islamists.
Muslim students assault 4 Hindus for celebrating T20 World Cup win in Nanded, Maharashtra
On June 29th, around 20-25 Muslim youngsters launched an attack on 4 Hindu students after the latter celebrated India’s T20 World Cup win in the Shrinagar area of Maharashtra’s Nanded region. The accused persons barged into the rented apartment of the 4 victims and assaulted them with sticks and iron rods. The victims identified as Vikas Madvi, Raosaheb Narwade, Balaji Pormad, and Kapil Patil suffered serious injuries after which a police complaint was filed. The entire incident got recorded in the CCTV footage in which the accused can be seen barging into the apartment of the victims. The owner of the apartment confirmed the incident and said that all the accused persons belonged to the Muslim community.
100-150 Muslims enter a temple after one accused Muslim molests a Hindu woman in Thane, Maharashtra
On the 27th, an FIR was registered by Thane Police against one Shehzad Sheikh after he molested a Hindu woman and forced her to keep her mouth shut. The incident happened last week in the Hajuri Dargah region of Thane which is Muslim dominated area. The accused molested a Hindu woman residing in the area. Later when the woman went to seek shelter in a nearby temple, around 100-150 Muslims entered the temple wearing shoes and threatened the woman to not file a police complaint. The accused however was caught by the police after the intervention of the Hindu community. Sakal Hindu Samaj, Thane organized a massive protest and demanded strict punishment against the accused.
Dalit Hindu attacked with swords by Eijaz, Afridi, and 2 more in Pune
Last week on June 27th, the Pune city police registered an official FIR against 4 individuals identified as Eijaz Sheikh, Afridi Sheikh, Sadik Sheikh, and Umesh Bhandari for brutally assaulting a 19-year-old Hindu who belongs to the Matang community. The accused persons are said to have threatened the individual and assaulted him using a sword at around 1:10 am on the 26th night.
As per the FIR copy obtained by OpIndia, the victim was stopped and assaulted by the accused persons in the Gangadha area of Pune when he was on his way home from a relative’s place. His vehicle was stopped by the accused after which the latter hurled caste-based abuses at the former and attacked with a sword. Meanwhile, the other accused threw glass bottles at the victim.
The Police have imposed sections 307, 504, 341, 506, 34 of the Indian Penal Code, 37(1), 135 of the Maharashtra Police Act, and sections 3(1)(r), 3(1)(s), 3(2), 3(v), 3(2)(va) and 6 of the SC/ST Act, 1989.
Finger of Hindu activist chopped by Islamists
On 24th June, Khadak Police Station in the Pune district of Maharashtra booked 9 Islamists identified as Atul Khan, Salman Sheikh, Sultan Sheikh, Aslam Patel, Asif Sheikh, and 4 others for a deadly attack on a Hindu Dalit activist. The accused mobilized ruffians and attacked Akshay Dhavre, breaking his thumb and leaving him severely injured. The accused persons are said to have attacked Dhavre given his claimed association with the BJP. The victim also works as a Hindu-Dalit activist and is known for raising his voice against Islamists in the region. A detailed report of this case can be read here.
Nasirullah raped minor boy inside madrassa in Thane
On Wednesday (26th June), a First Information Report (FIR) was registered against a man for raping an 11-year-old boy inside the premises of a madrassa in Bhiwandi city in the Thane district of Maharashtra. As per reports, the accused was identified as Nasirullah. The incident occurred when the victim was studying in the madrassa. Nasirullah sexually assaulted the minor boy and performed ‘unnatural sex.’
The accused has been booked under the Prevention of Child Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. The cops have now launched a search operation to nab Nasirullah.
Faridabad: Iqbal, Mehtab and others attack a temple priest by slashing his throat
On 28th June, a young priest at a local temple in Faridabad, Ravi Bhagat, was brutally assaulted and his throat was slashed using a knife by Islamists identified as Iqbal, Mehtab, and their accomplices. The incident took place outside the Kali Mata Temple located in Janata Colony in the Mujesar Police Station area of Faridabad. As per reports, the assailants chanted religious slogans including “Sar Tan Se Juda” at the time of the attack. Ravi Bhagat was rushed to the hospital for treatment.
Ravi Bhagat manages the temple and takes care of the rituals. On the night of the attack, he was sleeping on a cot outside the temple. The attackers approached him and started an argument. Soon, it escalated and they restrained him and began slashing his neck with a knife. The assailants were allegedly chanting “Sar Tan Se Juda” slogans at the time of the attack. Following the attack, they fled the scene.
Madrasa teacher, Abdul Rahman, earns triple life sentence for sexually assaulting minor girl student in Kerala
A fast-track court in Kerala’s Tirur convicted a Madrasa teacher, Abdur Rahiman (51), for sexually assaulting a minor girl who was under the age of seven at the time of the crime. Following the conviction, the court sentenced him to triple life imprisonment till the end of his life, 15 years imprisonment in various departments. The court also imposed a fine on the convicted Madrasa teacher and asked him to pay Rs 1.5 lakh. He will have to undergo an additional two years in prison, in case he fails to pay the fine. According to local media reports, it is enough to suffer the punishment together.
The convicted Madrassa teacher, Abdur Rahiman (51) was sentenced in Cheruparambi in southern Kuttur. The Tirur Police had registered a case against Abdur Rahiman on charges of sexually assaulting a student in a classroom in the Tirur area in April and May 2016.
Sharia in West Bengal?
On 30th June, a video shared by CPI(M) leader Mohammed Salim went viral over the internet in which a local Bahubali leader could be seen assaulting a married woman and a man. The duo could be seen lying helplessly on the road in the name of ‘summary Justice’. Sharing the video of the assault, CPI(M) leader and Former Rajya Sabha MP Salim alleged that the main accused seen in the video was a local TMC goon who goes by the nickname ‘JCB’. According to him, the local goon runs a Kangaroo court where he allegedly serves summary trial and punishment like the Taliban.
As the video was shared by the BJP leaders or supporters, the West Bengal police ruled by the I.N.D.I.Alliance associate TMC sent notices to the formers asking them to take the posts down. Several journalists BJP leaders and also advocates were served notices. Taking to X, Bhandari informed about the same and wrote, “Action against criminals: No. Action against journalists reporting the crime: Yes. Welcome to West Bengal!”
Supreme Court lawyer Shashank Shekhar Jha questioned if the West Bengal police has no shame left that they are asking X to delete his post wherein he talked about the incident in question. “What Bengal thinks today, India will think tomorrow. Bengal is thinking Sharia today,” Jha’s post stated.
X user Rishi Bagree said that a case against him for quoting a video of the Chopra incident shared by a CPIM leader. He called the Bengal Police’s action as “real dictatorship”.
“West Bengal Police filed a case against me for quoting a video of Md Salim, CPIM leader. Instead of taking action against the culprit they are busy shooting the messengers. This is how real dictatorship looks like,” Bagree posted.
It is important to note that the Congress party has always used Muslims and favored them as they assisted them in the elections by becoming a strong vote bank. This was evident in the recently happened Lok Sabha elections where Muslims in various places issued fatwas to vote in favor of INC.
Rahul Gandhi also has always extended support to Muslims and Islamists calling them secular. Last year in Washington he had made a statement calling the Muslim League, an off-shoot of Jinnah’s party as ‘completely secular’.
Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), which claims to have been born after Indian Independence in 1948, is an off-shoot of Pakistan founder and Islamist Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s All India Muslim League (AIML). The All India Muslim League was succeeded by the Muslim League in Pakistan and the Indian Union Muslim League in India. On its website, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) claims that its motto is secularism and communal harmony but has often openly indulged in carrying out those objectives which are contrary to its own motto. The Indian Union Muslim League has been notoriously known for flaring up communal incidents. The party was found involved in the planning as well as the execution of the brutal Marad massacre in Kerala in 2003 as per the report of Justice Thomas P Joseph Commission which was set up to investigate the incident.
Interestingly, Rahul Gandhi had called the Muslim League ‘secular’ in response to a question that said he criticized the BJP for being a “Hindu party” and divisive. Rahul is said to have lambasted the Centre on Monday for a ‘full-scale assault on the notion of India and the Constitution, as well as on those who opposed the attack on the Constitution.’ The remarks have however been condemned by BJP leaders, demanding an apology from Gandhi.