Gonda (Uttar Pradesh) – In yet another disturbing incident of religiously motivated violence, a Muslim cleric, Maulana Ishke Ahmad, was brutally attacked by members of Hindutva groups in Gonda district of Uttar Pradesh. The incident took place near Bilahi Bazaar on Wednesday evening, as per a report by the Observer Post.
According to reports, Maulana Ahmad was returning home from Gonda Kacheri when he stopped for tea at Bhilahi Bazaar. There, he was suddenly surrounded by several youths linked to Hindutva outfits. The mob hurled Islamophobic slurs at him, pulled his beard, snatched his skull cap, and declared that he “did not deserve to live.”
The attackers went further by attempting to coerce him into chanting religious slogans and even threatened to force him to consume pork, which is strictly forbidden in Islam. Despite the brutality, Ahmad managed to escape and later informed his family of the assault.
An FIR was lodged, detailing that the mob repeatedly called him a “mullah” and openly threatened to kill him, with one assailant suggesting that he should be thrown onto railway tracks. The police complaint confirmed the physical and verbal assault, clearly identifying it as a hate crime motivated by his religious identity.
This incident is part of a pattern of escalating hate crimes against Muslims in Uttar Pradesh and other parts of India, where visibly Muslim individuals—clerics, youth, or ordinary citizens—are increasingly targeted. Hindutva groups have often forced victims to chant “Jai Shri Ram” against their will, and in many cases, the assaults have turned fatal despite compliance.
The continuing lack of strict action by authorities has raised concerns over state complicity and the erosion of protection for minorities. Human rights observers warn that such unchecked violence poses a serious threat to communal harmony and the rule of law in India.
