Violent Muslim mob attacked Hindu Procession in Haryana’s Nuh District, killing several and vandalizing hundreds of vehicle.
A Hindu religious procession that started from Gurugram in Haryana was attacked by a mob of Muslims in the Nuh district on Monday, July 31, 2023. In the incident Muslim mob was seen stone pelting and shooting gun fires in the area, leaving several people dead and hundreds injured. The police had to use tear gas shells to disperse the violent crowd and restore law and order.
The procession, called ‘Brij Mandal Jalabhishek Yatra’, was organized by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal to visit important temples in the Muslim-dominated Mewat region that is divided between Haryana and Rajasthan. It was flagged off from Gurugram’s Civil Lines by Bharatiya Janata Party district president Gargi Kakkar.
According to reports, the trigger for the violence was an announcement made by Bajrang Dal activist and ‘gau rakshak’ Monu Manesar through social media that he would be joining the yatra despite threats given to him. Manesar was named as a suspect by the family of victims in Nasir-Junaid murder case, which involved the lynching of two Muslim men over suspicion of cow smuggling in 2021.
As the yatra reached Khedla Mod in Nuh, it came under attack by a group of Muslims who pelted stones at the participants and set fire to at least four cars. The Hindu devotees retaliated by throwing stones back at the attackers. The situation soon escalated into a full-fledged riot, with both sides using sticks, rods and sharp weapons.
Around 2,500 people who were part of the yatra took shelter inside a temple, where they were surrounded by the hostile Muslim mob. The police reached the spot and tried to rescue them, but faced resistance from the Muslim attackers. The police had to fire tear gas shells to disperse the crowd and escort the trapped devotees to safety.
Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said that the government had sent additional forces from neighboring districts to control the situation. He also said that helicopters were being arranged to send the troops. Internet services were suspended till Wednesday in Nuh to prevent further escalation of violence.
Vij condemned the attack on the yatra and said that strict action would be taken against those involved. He also appealed to both communities to maintain peace and harmony. He said that he spoke to the director general of police, additional chief secretary, and other senior officials over the incident.
The BJP district president Gargi Kakkar also denounced the attack and blamed it on some anti-social elements who wanted to disturb communal harmony. She said that the yatra was a peaceful and religious event that had been going on for years without any trouble. She demanded that the culprits be arrested and punished.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal also expressed their outrage over the attack and demanded justice for their members. They accused the local administration of failing to provide adequate security for the yatra. They also alleged that some political parties were behind the attack to create communal polarisation ahead of the upcoming assembly elections.
The Nasir-Junaid murder case is still pending in the court, with Monu Manesar being one of the accused. Manesar claims that he is innocent and has been falsely implicated in the case. He also claims that he has been receiving death threats from some Muslim groups who want him to withdraw from the case.
The Mewat region has witnessed several incidents of violence by Muslim mob and violence in the past, especially over issues related to cow protection and religious conversion by Muslims. The region has a large Muslim population, mostly belonging to the Meo community, who have been accused of cow smuggling and slaughtering in the past.
The yatra was supposed to cover 84 temples in Mewat region over a span of seven days. However, due to the violence, it has been cancelled for now. The police have registered cases against both sides and are investigating the matter further.