Schools closed, internet snapped in Sambhal after mosque survey violence kills 4

Four people were killed, and several others, including 20 police officers, were injured as hundreds of protesters opposing a mosque survey clashed with police in Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal on Sunday.

In response to the violence, authorities have imposed strict security measures, enforced prohibitory orders, shut down schools and colleges and suspended internet services in the area.

The survey was conducted following a court directive issued in response to a complaint alleging that the mosque was built after the Mughals demolished a temple.

SAMBHAL VIOLENCE 
Internet services have been suspended for 24 hours in Sambhal. All schools upto Class 12 and colleges have been closed, and prohibitory orders banning public gatherings are in place. The district administration has also issued orders preventing citizens from purchasing or stockpiling stones, soda bottles, or any flammable or explosive materials. Any outsider, social organisation or public representative has also been banned from entering the area without permission.

Violence broke out after protesters opposed the Advocate Commission’s survey following a complaint alleging that the Shahi Masjid in Sambhal was constructed during the Mughal era by demolishing a temple previously at the site. The protesters resorted to stone pelting and setting vehicles ablaze, prompting the police to respond with tear gas shells. The unrest persisted for hours, starting at 7 am on Sunday.

Police said that shots were fired by the miscreants and a police officer suffered a gunshot to the leg. Another officer was hit by pellets and 15 to 20 security personnel were injured in the violence. Another cop suffered a serious head injury, while the deputy collector fractured his leg.

Visuals showed protesters pelting stones at cops from atop buildings and in front of the Shahi Jama Masjid. Later, police personnel were purportedly seen cornering and hitting people as they tried to disperse a large crowd in a narrow alleyway.

Those who died have been identified as Nauman, Bilal, Naim, and Mohd Kaif. While there are allegations that the victims sustained bullet injuries, the police have stated that the exact cause of death will be confirmed after the autopsy.

Opposition parties slammed the BJP over the violence. The Congress alleged that the police directly fired on the protesters, describing it as the “horrifying result of a well-planned conspiracy” by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and the BJP-RSS. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav also criticised the BJP, accusing its government and administration of orchestrating the violence “to divert attention from electoral malpractice”.

The BJP shot back alleging that the INDIA alliance had been trying to create unrest since the failure in the Lok Sabha polls. It said that those who do not agree with judicial orders should take legal recourse. A party spokesperson blamed what he called the “ghamandia alliance” (an alliance full of arrogance), a term BJP leaders have often used for the INDIA bloc, for the violence.

Tension has been brewing in Sambhal since November 19, when the Jama Masjid was surveyed on the orders of a local court following a petition claiming that a Harihar temple once stood at the site. Police stated that the first survey was incomplete, prompting a second survey on Sunday. However, amid violence, the Advocate Commissioner completed the survey on Sunday.

A magisterial enquiry will be conducted into the incident, officials said. Among the twenty-one people detained are two women, and officials said that those accused in the violence would be booked under the stringent National Security Act (NSA).

Supreme Court lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain, who is a petitioner in the case, urged the Court of Civil Judge (Senior Division) the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to take control of the “temple”. Gopal Sharma, a local lawyer for the Hindu side, claimed that the temple that once stood at the site was demolished by Mughal Emperor Babur in 1529.