– Abdul Bari Masoud
New Delhi/Mumbai, Jan. 27: The Mumbai police imposed Section 144 and denied permission to the Hindutva forces’ protest march in Mira Road on Friday, where Hindutva hooligan mobs had ransacked shops belonging to Muslims and assaulted several people on the eve of Ram Mandir on Tuesday. The eerie calm is prevailing in the locality as the police arrested 17 people from the minority community and bulldozed their shops as “instant justice.”
Mumbai police’s unilateral action against the minority community members and not preventing the hooligans during the attacks on the Muslim neighborhood came under fire from several sections. On Thursday, 12 arrested youths from Mira Road were produced in the Thane court. Rights organizations came forward to defend the victims and bring the real culprits to justice. The Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) legal team of advocates Niyaz A. Shaikh, A. Jabbar Siddiqui, Fazl Ur Rahman Quraishi, and others stood for them in court. The next hearing is on January 28.
Meanwhile, a written complaint against the biased attitude of police personnel and rightwing politicians, the lawlessness of Hindutva goons and their violence, bulldozing of properties without notice, etc. is lodged through email to Maharashtra DGP, Thane Police Commissioner, and other concerned authorities.
Former IPS officer Abdur Rahman also urged the Mumbai Police to conduct a fair investigation and take action against the miscreants. In a post on X, Rahman said, “Mira Road incident: First incident: On the 22nd, Hindus took out a bike rally and raised agitated slogans in the Naya Nagar area. Many bike rallies were cancelled. Second incident: Muslims vandalized the car. Some people were beaten. Third incident: In response, Hindus brandished weapons at many places, and Muslim shopkeepers were beaten up in many areas. Fourth incident: Nitish Rane and Geeta Jain gave inflammatory speeches. Of these, FIR has been registered only on the second incident, and only Muslims have been arrested.”
Clashes broke out between two Muslim and Hindutva groups on the eve of Ram Temple’s opening on Monday, when the Hindutva mobs demanded their procession be allowed to travel through a Muslim neighborhood in defiance of police protests. A few people were hurt in the altercations. In Naya Nagar, an area predominantly populated by Muslims, the authorities bulldozed Muslim stores on Tuesday and detained several people.
Speaking with Radiance, Nationalist Congress Party (Ajit faction) general secretary Syed Jalaluddin said because of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar’s intervention, the police denied permission to the Hindutva elements who wanted to take a protest march in the area, and the police also imposed prohibitory orders. He said a delegation of NCP minority leaders also called on the police commissioner and apprised him of the police’s biased actions. After the meeting, he claimed to have also arrested some members of the majority community who were involved in the violence and rioting. He said Minister of Medical Education Hasan Mushrif was also keeping tabs on the situation and is in touch with the police.
“An investigation is going on in the matter, and the accused are being arrested based on evidence. The atmosphere is calm in the area, and some people are broadcasting different videos about the incident. Due to this, misunderstandings are spreading in society,” the police said in a statement.
