That social media is a tool of hate politics is clear, since a video of Mohammed Haroon Kasni being slapped and heckled outside a Hisar mosque, allegedly by Bajrang Dal members, has gone viral.
Media reports state that the Haryana Police made a solitary arrest a day after a Muslim man was dragged out of a mosque and assaulted, allegedly by activists of the right-wing Bajrang Dal, in the state on Wednesday. Tension prevailed in the locality in Hisar, 240 km from here, where the attack took place and security has been tightened in the area. On Tuesday, a group of people in Hisar, Haryana who had gathered for a Bajrang Dal-organised protest against the recent Amarnath yatra attack heckled and assaulted a Muslim man outside a local mosque. Some reports have said the man, 30-year-old Mohammed Haroon Kasni, was the imam of the mosque, though he has said he was only there to pray. After a video of the incident went viral on the internet, the main accused was arrested by the police on Wednesday, The Hindu reported.
The victim of the lynch assault, had reportedly come from Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh, and was slapped and beaten on Tuesday evening and the entire incident was even recorded on camera.
The attackers were allegedly members of the Bajrang Dal and were taking out a march in Hisar to protest the terrorist attack on Amarnath Yatra pilgrims in Jammu and Kashmir, when they got hold of the victim. The Muslim Kalyan Committee head in Hisar Harphool Khan on Wednesday said: “The police have not taken any action so far. The accused must be arrested and security should be provided near the mosque
.
A video of Mohammed Haroon Kasni being slapped and heckled outside a Hisar mosque, allegedly by Bajrang Dal members, has gone viral.
Meanwhile, Mohammed Haroon Kasni (30), the victim survivor of the assault told the Indian Express on Wednesday said he tried explaining to the mob that he was also against terrorists but no one listened to him. “I kept explaining that I am also against the terrorists and traitors of the country. But they did not listen and slapped me after dragging me out of the mosque where I was performing namaz,” Haroon said.
A resident of Mirjapur Pol village of Saharanpur district in Uttar Pradesh, Haroon had come to Hisar for the first time. At 5.30 pm on Tuesday, he was at Jama Masjid in the town to perform prayers when Bajrang Dal activists allegedly assaulted him. According to police, the incident took place during a march by Bajrang Dal activists led by Kapil Vats to protest the attack on Amarnath yatra pilgrims.
Hisar SP Manish Choudhary said that one of the accused, Anil, who has a shop in local auto market, had been arrested on the basis of the video footage of the incident, which has gone viral.
“Anil, who is around 30, was also part of the demonstration. During interrogation, he confessed to having slapped Haroon when he did not say Bharat Mata Ki Jai. Anil also told us that he participated in dharnas by shopkeepers of the auto market. We have to verify whether he is a member of the Bajrang Dal,” Choudhary said.
When Haryana Industries and Commerce Minister Vipul Goel was asked about increase in the incidents of such vigilantism, said, “In any state, such small incidents are natural but the government has responsibility to take action. Appropriate action will be taken in the matter as early as possible.”
When he recalled the assault, Haroon said, “The Bajrang Dal activists dragged me out from the mosque and asked me to raise slogans like Jai Shri Ram and Jai Mata Ki. This was issue of my religious faith. I was fearful and kept standing silent. They slapped me again and again.”
Haroon, a maulvi, explained that he had come to Hisar to sell mangoes. “During evening hours, I went to the mosque. I and four others were performing namaz when the Bajrang Dal men entered the mosque and threatened us,” he said. He further said that it was easy to target him as a Muslim “because of my beard and cap. Others hid in different corners of the mosque. They would have killed me had the police not arrived,” he also added.
According to the victim of the assault, the activists wanted him to shout “Bharat Mata ki Jai”. He said he pleaded with his assaulters to spare him but his pleas went unheard. He demanded that the attackers be arrested immediately. Expectedly, Bajrang Dal local leader Kapil Vats denied involvement of any of his men in the attack. “No one from the Bajrang Dal manhandled anyone. Our protest was against the terrorist attack. What happened later, we don’t know,” Vats claimed.
While a police official said they have not received any complaint in the incident, sources confirmed having received a complaint from a person called Abid.Haryana has a Bharatiya Janata Party government since October 2014.