The move by the municipal corporation raises serious questions as reports suggest that the madrasa’s appeal in court was scheduled for February 2. People from the Muslim community are asking if the court was about to hear the case regarding the alleged illegal structure, why was it razed a day before it? This move is one more case of the Bulldozer being used against the state’s minorities by the Eknath Shinde Shiv Sena-Bharaitiya Janata Party (BJP) regime).

Atmosphere tense

As per reports, during the demolition, locals shouted slogans and expressed their disagreement which escalated tension in the area. Although police have successfully maintained peace till now with implementation of section 144 , the atmosphere in the area remains tense. Reports suggest that strict identity checks have been enforced for those moving in and out of the areas.

Interestingly, the  Laxtirth Vasahat Peace Committee had said that the structure in question has not faced complaints from locals or the community, asserting that actions are based on external complaints. Yesterday, former corporator Anandrao Khedkar, Yuvraj Khandagale, and peace committee members demanded an extension of encroachment proceedings in light of these concerns.

Protest from Hindutva organisations led to Bulldozer action?

Due to some questions about permissions around this Madrassa, far right Hindutva organisations had asked that the Alif Anjuman madrasa in Laxtirth Vasahat Colony be closed down. Following the protests of Hindutva organisations, the trust received a notice from the local corporation instructing them to remove the structure. In the meanwhile, the trust submitted a petition to the court. Following the court hearing on the petition, a temporary stay was granted for a certain period of time. Later, the court had denied the application to restrict the action in a hearing on January 23. However, the Municipal Corporation anti-encroachment team made all the necessary preparations and headed to demolish the Madrasa on Wednesday at approximately seven in the morning. The madrasa was razed down with the help of  three JCBs, a dumper, fire department vehicles, etc.

The entire demolition was incited it appears from local news reports after a complaint by the controversial Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal in May 2023. Thereafter as pressure built up, authorities came and sealed the Madrassa in December 2023. There unconfirmed allegations, of a bus of “children” being “stoned” after some of them raised the slogan “Jai Sri Ram.”

Hindutva organisations participating in the protests

In fact Vishva Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal, Hindu Janajagruti Samiti, BJP, Shiv Sena, Hindu Ekta Andolan, Hindu Mahasabha, etc. have been active in these protests against the Madrassa.

Related: 

Historic 600 year old Delhi mosque demolished without notice

250-year-old mosque in Delhi partially demolished in “anti encroachment drive”

Evictions are at an all-time high as bulldozers gain momentum in the country

The post Maharashtra: Bulldozer Raj, tensions rise in Kolhapur’s Laxtirth Vasahat Colony after administration demolishes Madrasa under pressure from Hindutva organisations appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Hindutva organisations, ably supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and JDS have been alleging that a saffron flag was “removed” after it was hoisted; authorities are clear however that permission had only been granted to hoist the national flag at Keragodu village in Mandya; however the organisers (mis)used the permission to hoist the majoritarian bhagwa dhwaj.

This was confirmed in a public statement by Karnataka’s home minister, Parameshwara. Speaking to reporters from the Deccan Herald, Indian Express and other media on Sunday, January 28, he clarified that that permission was not issued for hoisting saffron flag on Republic Day at all. “Therefore, the panchayat officials removed the saffron flag and hoisted the tricolour. As a result there was a ruckus and the police resorted to light caning,” he said. The issue was the prior flying of the Hanuman flag here to observe the January 22 Ayodhya “celebrations.”

The Home minister said that saffron flag cannot be hoisted on government land, but it can be hoisted anywhere else. The flagpole under “seizure” by majoritarian forces is on government land and does not belong as wrongly alleged to the Hanuman temple. Fomenting a controversy on the back of the aggressive Ayodhya event on January 22, these outfits had even observed a bandh on Monday, January 29.

Now peace loving citizens have stepped in, reports Deccan Herald. Addressing media persons here on Wednesday, January 31, M B Nagannagowda of Samana Manaska Vedike said, “There have been efforts to create tension and tarnish the progressive culture in the district, projecting the trivial issues. It has become inevitable to fight against the force that has been creating disharmony. Hence, various organisations under the forum would observe Mandya bandh on February 7.”

“The district administration should take strict action against those, who had involved in creating trouble. The miscreants, who had pelted stones on the Kuruba student’s hostel should be arrested. More than 20 organisations, including Raitha Sangha, Dalit Sangharsha Samiti, CITU and Karnataka Rakshana Vedike will be supporting the bandh,” he added.

Meanwhile, desperate for a polarising issue ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, BJP leaders held a meeting at Keragodu village in connection with the issue and discuss the future course of action. The meeting was chaired by BJP district unit president Indresh Kumar. BJP leader Ashok Jayaram said that the protest would continue till the ‘Hanuma dhwaja’ is hoisted again at the 108-ft flag pole in Keragodu village. “The government has been bringing in police from other districts and deploying in Mandya. The women and children of the village are under fear. However, the fight against the government will continue,” he said.

Incidentally, the village boasts of three heritage temples: The main Anjaneya (Hanuman) temple, the Basaveshwara temple, and the Vigneshwara temple. The latter two temples stand 100 feet apart on opposite sides of the road. The Gowrishankar Trust has been actively conducting religious programmes relating to all three deities of the village. While the village does not have a single Ram temple, it is proud host to the Anjaneya temple where festivities and observances around Hanuman have been happening over the past four decades.

The politics of a flagpole

On the back of the Ram temple Ayodhya event on January 22, a Hanuman flag had been flying atop this flagpole constructed in the village. On Republic Day when it was time to hoist the customary tricolour, an aggressive resistance was reportedly put up by some elements and when one individual brought the matter to the notice of higher officials, including the Executive Officer (EO), the Panchayat Development Officer (PDO), and the Taluk Panchayat Officer (TPO), who granted Kumar three days’ time to set right the issue. So, on the morning of Republic Day, the Gowrishankar Trust members, associates, and a few villagers brought down the Hanuman flag and hoisted the Tricolour with a decorated photograph of Mahatma Gandhi placed beneath the flagpole. Not to be outdone, on the same evening, a member of the trust lowered the Tricolour and again hoisted the Hanuman flag.

Thereafter the conflict spiralled with rumours and false information against the saffron flag being spread by divisive elements. Finally, on Sunday morning, around 10.30 am, around eight battalions of Karnataka State Reserve Police (KSRP) — headed by a Deputy Superintendent of Police rank officer — were deployed for maintaining law and order in the village. The district administration officials arrived at the flagpole to lower the religious flag and hoist the Tricolour. They were once again opposed by villagers, who this time resisted along with a large number of women folk from the village and surroundings areas in the front of the flagpole. Allegations of administration and government being “anti-Hindu” flew thick and fast.

When the villagers refused to move away, the police resorted to lathi-charge, and the protesting women were taken into preventive custody. Three people were injured in the lathi-charge and they were taken to the hospital, administered first-aid, and sent home. The authorities lowered the Hanuman flag, hoisted the Tricolour, and barricaded the flagpole.

They further imposed Section 144 (curfew) in the village. They also stated that the ruling Congress government was attempting to incite communal violence by lowering the Hanuman flag.

Local politics

Meanwhile, the Indian Express reports that an executive magistrate and tahsildar for Mandya taluk in Karnataka has filed a complaint of unlawful assembly, wrongful restraint and use of criminal force on public servants against Hindu activists who obstructed officials from hoisting the national flag within the premises of the Keragodu gram panchayat office after taking down a religious flag.

Executive magistrate Shivakumar Biradar has accused Prathap Belidegalu, a resident of Keragodu, and 400 to 500 other right-wing activists of staging protests in violation of prohibitory orders during the removal of a saffron Hanuman flag in the village and preventing state officials from hoisting the national flag in its place on January 28.

According to the complaint filed at night on January 28, says IE, a saffron flag was hoisted in violation of rules by the Sri Gowrishankar Seva Trust and this was objected to by some rivals. To resolve the issue, at a peace meeting, village officials tried to convince the members of the Trust to allow the removal of the saffron flag and the hoisting of the national flag in its place. However, they refused to cooperate. The Keragodu panchayat development officer then sought the assistance of higher officials in removing the saffron flag installed in violation of the rules, according to the complaint.

“With tensions rising between supporters of the trust and a rival group, Mandya taluk officials decided to intervene and arrived at the gram panchayat office on the morning of January 28 with the police but around 400 to 500 Hindutva activists from Keragodu and other villages prevented the saffron flag from being taken down,” says the police complaint.

“Despite over three hours of effort, from 6 am to 9 am, to convince the protestors of the need to remove the flag, they were unrelenting. Subsequently, with the help of the police, the Hanuman flag was withdrawn,” the complaint states.

According to the complaint, the protestors did not allow the national flag to be raised on the flag pole after the removal of the saffron flag and this resulted in prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code being imposed in a 200-metre area around the flag post.

Around 3 pm on January 28 when the government officials tried to hoist the national flag, they were obstructed and manhandled by the protestors, it is alleged. Thereafter a lathi charge also reportedly followed that has given an excuse to the right-wing to spiral local tensions.

Related:

Karnataka: Hindutva groups call for economic boycott of Muslim vendors at Siddheshwar Temple

Karnataka: Elderly Muslim man assaulted, allegedly forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram

Maha Dharani: A warning to Congress-led Karnataka government, deliver on poll promises or face people

The post Keregodu flag conflict: Progressive organisations call for Mandya bandh on February 7 appeared first on SabrangIndia.

On Thursday, 3 August 2023, Hindu Jagruti Manch organised an event where a hardline Hindutva monk called for Hindus to take up arms in Kaithal, Haryana.

Location: Kaithal, Haryana

Hindu Jagruti Manch organised an event where a far-right monk called for arming Hindus. pic.twitter.com/Sx55P9U4BT

— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) August 5, 2023

“Stay prepared! Carry stick, baton, gun, and if nothing, stones in a plastic bag. Don’t carry flags, one flag is enough! All must carry weapons! If such an issue would have happened in UP, bulldozers would have worked. If Manohar Lal Khattar doesn’t have bulldozers, he can get some from UP.” The speaker cried out to an enthusiastic crowd.

Another speaker came up, saying “This is the fight of Hindus, they don’t need the administration or the government. They can fight for their dignity by themselves! If such instances occur in Haryana, or elsewhere in India, then consequences will be felt. Hindu Samaj will display their strength!”

In the national capital, Delhi’s Shahdara Chowk, BJP leader and Hindu United Front head Jai Bhagwan Goyal delivered hate speech against Muslims, promoted dangerous stereotypes & called for using bulldozers. The video surfaced on the internet on the 5th of August, 2023.

“Rakshasa (Monsters) in the mode of Jihadis, Bangladeshis, and Rohingya, are activated again! …It seems like their time has come. They don’t live in peace, nor do they let others live in peace! Our India should be free of these Rakshasa, jihadis, and Islamic terrorists.”

“These jihadis will not listen to words, they must be dealt with force. It is time that they are dealt with in the same manner they have been crushed by the bulldozer in UP… These ‘Miyabhais’ are all working towards Ghazwa-e-Hind and Muslim Rashtra. There should be special courts to prosecute them and give them death by hanging!”

Location: Shahdara Chowk, New Delhi

BJP leader and Hindu United Front head Jai Bhagwan Goyal delivered hate speech against Muslims, promoted dangerous stereotypes & called for using bulldozers. pic.twitter.com/Ac2dGazTIq

— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) August 5, 2023

In a video from Pali, Rajasthan, that surfaced on the internet on 5th of August, 2023, Vishwa Hindu Parishad members organised a rally where hateful slogans were chanted, including “Desh ke gaddaron ko, Goli maro salon ko” (Shoot the traitors of our country. Speakers at the protest urged the government to protect Hindu pilgrimages and rallies from such violence by Muslims.

In Mahendragarh, Haryana, a Hindutva rally witnessed an extremist leader deliver a venomous speech against Muslims, branding them as traitors. “Don’t believe Muslims, even if they swear on their faith.”

Going further, he stated, “Beware of these Muslims in whatever situation you encounter them, whether they come to you as workers, barbers, whatever. They spit in the plates they eat, they will urinate on food, and give you!”  The video surfaced on the internet of the 5th of August, 2023, as the state of Haryana was beginning to barely recover from the throngs of violence that overtook it over the past week.

Location: Mahendragarh, Haryana

At a far-right rally, an extremist leader delivers a provocative speech against Muslims, and calls them traitors. pic.twitter.com/lwKpd26vBF

— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) August 5, 2023

At an event organised by the Hindu Mahasabha in Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, participants called for India to become a Hindu nation and did not shy away from threatening violence to achieve their objectives.

In Jalalabad, Uttar Pradesh, Rashtriya Bajrang Dal leader Arpit Gupta delivered a hate speech against Muslims, issuing threats and instigating violence over the Gyanvapi mosque dispute.

He threatened a repeat of Babri Masjid, “if judges don’t rule in favour of Hindus in the Gyanvapi mosque dispute.”

“On sacrificing lakhs of Hindus, could we contribute our temple to Bhagwan Raam. A survey on Gyanvapi (Mosque) must be immediately conducted!” Hateful slogans of a Desh ke gaddaron ko goli maro salon ko also followed through can be seen in the video that surfaced on Twitter on 7th of August, 2023.

Location: Jalalabad, Sahajanpur, Uttar Pradesh

Rashtriya Bajrang Dal leader and lawyer in district civil court Arpit Gupta delivers hate speech against Muslims.

He threatens a repeat of Babri Masjid if judges don’t rule in favor of Hindus in the Gyanvapi mosque dispute. pic.twitter.com/7nHd8eevQM

— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) August 7, 2023

As Haryana reeled from violence, Hindutva leaders at a Hindu Mahapanchayat event in Gurugram called for the boycott of Muslims and the closure of mosques. The video, appearing on Twitter on the 6th of August, 2023, saw speakers saying “I appeal to you with folded hands, don’t give any Muslim your house (on rent)!” The speaker also urged people to support the (meat) shop of “our Valmiki Hindu brothers!”

Location: Gurugram, Haryana

Leaders at Hindu Mahapanchayat call for the boycott of Muslims and shutting down mosques. pic.twitter.com/AxZVyKAdCG

— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) August 6, 2023

In Narwana, Haryana, the Bajrang Dal organised a hate rally where violent slogans were chanted. The rally also targeted Rohingya and Pakistanis, further escalating communal tensions and threatening social harmony. The video from Narwana surfaced on Twitter on the 6th of August, 2023.

Slogans such as “Jihadion aur gauhatyaron ko phansi ho” rang through as did the “goli maaron salon ko” slogan trend. They also threatened, saying there would be consequences if strict action wasn’t taken against the Rohingyas and Pakistanis in India.

Location: Narwana, Haryana

Bajrang Dal organised a hate rally, threatening violence while shouting hateful slogans. pic.twitter.com/1Vcw3GNFoM

— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) August 6, 2023

Moving north, in Fazilka, Punjab, a video surfaced on the 6th of Augst, 2023, showing a Bajrang Dal leader justifying the murder of two Muslim men by Monu Manesar. His inflammatory speech blamed the victims and propagated dangerous conspiracy theories, fueling animosity between communities.  “They ask why Monu (Manesar) killed those two Muslim men, but why do they again and again cut a cow sacred to Hindus? No Hindu has troubled mullahs or maulvis.”

He continued, “They retaliated for Babri by firing the Godhra trains filled with devotees, they (Muslims) should not forget the consequences they felt after the train burning! Not one but a thousand more Monu Manesar should emerge. Just as more and more Muslims are coming here, now Christians have also started increasing their conversions…What has happened in Mewat, the same is happening in Manipur.”, he told the cheering crowd.

Location: Fazilka, Punjab

In police presence, a Bajrang Dal leader justifies the murder of Nasir and Junaid.

“Even if we have to cut someone, we won’t shy away,” he told the crowd. pic.twitter.com/ee2xJQpZME

— HindutvaWatch (@HindutvaWatchIn) August 6, 2023

Related:

Bail not Jail for Bajrang Dal man, Bittu who posted a provocative video on day of Nuh clash

Suresh Chavhanke’s hate filled rhetoric leaves behind a trail of violence

Three separate benches of the Indian Supreme Court interrogate hate speech

Hate speeches amplified by television, incited targeted violence against Muslims: CCR Report, Feb ‘20 Delhi riots

Hindu Janjagran Manch Leader Delivers Hate Speech, Advocates Economic Boycott of Muslims

The post Rising Tensions: Hindutva organisations continue with hate speeches across India appeared first on SabrangIndia.