An effigy of suspended BJP leader and former spokesperson of the party, Nupur Sharma, was found hanging on the Fort Road in Belagavi on Friday, 10th of June 2022. Nupur Sharma, who has been under an intense attack from Islamists and facing several death threats after quoting hadiths during a TV debate, was suspended from her party earlier this week over her comments which mentioned Prophet Muhammad.
The local police said that the effigy was hanged at night on the cables on Fort Road in the city and it came to the notice of the police at dawn. The effigy has since been removed from the area described as ‘communally sensitive’.
How Nupur Sharma ended up in the crosshairs of Islamists
In the last week of May 2022, during a news debate, Nupur Sharma asked what if she makes offensive remarks about Islam the way people were making offensive remarks about Shivling and Hinduism. Since then, Nupur has found herself at the center of a raging storm after Islamists, egged on by the likes of Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair, issued multiple threats against her and her family for expressing her views on Prophet Muhammad and Islam.
Diplomatic storm over Nupur Sharma’s comments
Following her comments, even the Arab world joined in the outrage along with Islamists from India, and countries like Qatar, Kuwait, and Iran called on the Indian ambassadors to register their displeasure with the entire thing. There were hashtags trending in almost all Islamic countries calling for a boycott of Indian products over her remarks.
Facing an unprecedented diplomatic storm, the BJP suspended Nupur Sharma from the party. In the suspension letter, the party’s central disciplinary committee wrote, “You have expressed views contrary to the party’s position on various matters… Pending further inquiry, you are suspended from the party and from your responsibilities with immediate effect.”
Meanwhile, the death threats towards Nupur Sharma and her family continued to flow thick and fast, and this hanging of her effigy is another reminder of the very real threats she is facing. There are multiple bounties on her head as well now ranging from 20 lakhs to 1 Crore.