Days after violence erupted in Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur over the controversial remarks made by now-suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma on Prophet Muhammed, uneasy calm prevails in the city amid filing of various FIRs and arrests. “We don’t know, maybe our child, or we are next to get arrested, while our house will get demolished” the residents said.
The demonstration took place after the afternoon prayers on June 10, when a crowd of more than 1,000-1,500 people marched from Jama Masjid to Ghanta Ghar — the area is also known as Nehru Market, which is a km long. The people were chanting slogans, and demanding the arrest of Ms. Sharma, a senior police officer deployed at the location said. A team of Rapid Action Force (RAF), Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) and the local police had been deployed in the area, he added.
“The situation was brought under control in a few hours. We had heavy police deployment in the area; shops at the market were shut, and the shopkeepers were asked to leave, while we tried to maintain law and order in the region,” he added.
84 people held
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Saharanpur, Akash Tomar, on Monday said three cases were registered on June 10 by the police, in which, a total of 84 people had been arrested in connection with Saharanpur violence. Based on the CCTV footage, 100 people had been identified.
Mr Tomar said a joint team of the Saharanpur administration, development authority, magistracy, revenue, municipal corporation and the police was formed to take action on illegal properties of the accused in the violence.
Mr. Tomar said the teams were constantly in contact with religious leaders and no innocent would be harassed. “Action will be taken against the main accused under the National Security Act [NSA],” he added.
While the violence was leading the headlines, Mr. Tomar on Monday said 18 people (including 12 Hindus and 6 Muslims) had been arrested in the city for hate speech in the last week.
Shamshuddin, 44, owner of a phone repair shop at Nehru Market, said he had closed his shop after seeing the crowd, most of which were young adults. “The protesters wore face masks and a piece of cloth on their face, hence they weren’t recognisable.” According to him, the crowd did not pelt stones, and they did not damage anything.
He said the crowd was enraged over the comments made against the Prophet. “Such comments should be discouraged, but in this area which is dominated by both Muslims and Hindus, we live with peace,” he added.
Different versions
While Mr. Shamshuddin claimed the protest was peaceful, Raju Bhutani, 49, a retailer at Nehru Market, was attacked during the demonstration. He said he was attacked with stones, while the entrance table of his shop was damaged, “I was trying to safeguard myself, but I was aware the demonstrators would dismantle the entrance.”
His friend Pankaj Upadhyaya, 48, another retailer, was also attacked, “My hand got fractured when the group pelted stones at me,” he said. Mr. Upadhyaya said, “I’ve never seen such a crowd, I could recall the 2014 attacks but this was even more intense.”
Subhash Gulati, 73, who owned a kiosk at the market, was also attacked by the demonstrators. “They ran away with the clothes I had put up; I asked them to not touch that, but they didn’t listen,” he said.
“Later, Inspector General Preetinder Singh, along with Crime Branch heard the problems the shopkeepers faced during the demonstration,” Mr. Gulati added. Sonu Narula, 53, another shopkeeper, said vehicles parked in the area were attacked by the demonstrators. “One of the demonstrators damaged my scooter with a heavy stone.”
While the family members of those who have been arrested continue to remain perplexed, many are afraid to speak up. Mohammed Umair, 20, said his brother was apprehended on Saturday by the police. He said the police did not give them a warning. Around 20 police vehicles and a bulldozer gathered in the tiny lane no. 5 of Khatakheri on Saturday around 3 p.m. to demolish the shuttering at the rooftop of the house that belonged to the accused.
“We’re not that privileged to speak up about our issues; we don’t have a safe space, and when we do, we get arrested, and house gets demolished” he said. Mr. Umair claimed that the family members were present at the house and were abused by police personnel. “The bulldozer later demolished the exterior of the house, and left us with fear,” he added.
Residents of Saharanpur feel bulldozers are being used to attack free speech, Muslims and the underprivileged. Meherbaan Malik, 44, an artisan at Khatakheri, said religion was being used as a tool to create a divide among people. “We as a society were supposed to move forward, every other day, we’re being told otherwise.” He said the comments made over religion by leaders across parties should be denounced and not promoted. “If we keep promoting such leaders, we’re going back to the ground,” he added.
