It’s been more than two months since right-wing Hindu vigilantes are protesting for not letting the Muslim community perform the Friday prayers in public spaces in Gurugram. Gurugram is hardly an hour away from the National capital, and the continuous protests by these so-called “Hindu Saviours” and their groups have raised serious concerns for the safety of the local Muslims in the area. The conditions in which the Muslim community is living in India since the Hindu Nationalist Bhartiya Janata Party came into power has always been full of trepidation with fear of their lives of theirs and their loved ones.
This is not the first time these jingoistic and aggressive groups have tried to stop the people from performing their weekly prayers. Last week, the demonstrators parked around dozens of trucks at one of the prayer sites in sector 37 of Gurugram. This is famously known by its older name Gurgaon and not to be surprised by the law and order in the area as absolute and strict actions have been taken against the people creating communal tension as the area is governed by Bharatiya Janata Party.
Gurugram is a financial and technology hub with a population of around 1.1 million according to the census of 2011. Less than 05 per cent of Muslims are residents in Gurugram.
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Last Friday, as people from the Muslim community came to perform the weekly congregational prayer, the right-wing men started to shout religious slogans and heckled the worshippers. Heavy police were deployed at the site and still, the men were heard threatening the saying the prayer won’t be allowed. A video from the same day was shared all over the internet in which a Hindu vigilante, Dinesh Bharti was seen heckling the Imam who is identified as Shehzad Khan saying “Namaz Nahi hogi yahan”.
Last month, Govardhan Puja was held at one of the namaz sites in sector 12. Members of right-wing organizations and BJP functionaries were present. BJP leader Kapil Mishra who held the pro-CAA rally and delivered hate speeches that triggered the pogroms against Muslims in February 2021 was also present at the Namaz site for Govardhan Pooja and again gave speeches that reflected his hatred against the Muslim community.
People of the Muslim community said that they are praying in open spaces because of compulsion and not a choice. Altaf Ahmad, the co-founder of Gurgaon Muslim Council, highlighted that the number of spaces available for prayers was around 108 until three years back. As the communal tension started to cover the area and the first instance of disruption was seen in 2018 the number shrank to 37 and now because of the persistent pressure from the Hindu groups, the number has further shrunk to 20.
Mufti Mohammad Saleem, president of the local chapter of Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, a leading organization of Islamic scholars, said “namaz has not been happening even at those 20 designated sites because members of the right-wing groups have been coming there, blocking the sites or disrupting it”.
The constant disruption by the Hindu groups to follow the faith and pray has become a serious concern for the Muslims, and they want the administrators to look into the matter seriously.
Ahmad of the Muslim council asked the government to provide them land to build the mosque so that the people can follow their faith with dignity. “We are not asking for land for free. We are ready to pay. But if they will not provide us land to construct mosques, where will we go and pray?” he asked.
It’s not only the Muslim community who is the target of these Hindutva groups but every other faith that follows different religions and has different ideologies. On November 28th a church was vandalized in Dwarka by members of Bajrang Dal. The attack was held when the church was holding its first Sunday prayer. The church was holding its first prayer on Sunday when a mob of around 100 gathered around and started sloganeering Jai Shree Ram, Goli Maaro. They started to climb the tables and vandalize the board of the church, said one of the eyewitnesses and coordinator.
The police filed two FIRs, one against those accused of vandalism and the second against those present in the church for violating Delhi Disaster Management Act guidelines.
Unfortunately, there’s no end to incidents like these. Now, these goons have started to vandalize schools as well. Yesterday a missionary school in Madhya Pradesh was vandalized by a group of men from the Hindutva organization claiming religious conversion of eight students.
In the governance of the Bharatiya Janata Party, this is where we have come as a nation. India has gone almost a decade back in economic, social, and ideological aspects.
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