A dispute that arose due to the mere splattering of water on the clothes of a village youth on the way to his afternoon namaz, took the shape of a communal confrontation in Nasirpur village of New Mandi police station, Muzaffarnagar district, on Monday. Stone pelting and firing were carried out, in which Brajpal and his son Aakash suffered injuries. In a critical condition, Aakash was referred to Meerut, but he passed away. His father Brajpal is in a critical condition.

On Monday afternoon, Shahzad was going to read namaz. When he reached near the house of his neighbor Brajpal, few drops of water coming out of a pipe accidentally splashed on his clothes. Shahzad got angry at this and had a heated argument with Aakash and his father.

Sensing the tension between both groups, a panchayat was held in the village and the matter was settled. But later that evening, Shahzad’s group suddenly attacked Brajpal’s house by pelting stones and firing. The firing resulted in a serious injury to Brajpal and death of his son Aakash. Dozens of people on both sides were injured in the clash. A bullet hit Akash in the head and he was referred to Meerut in a critical condition where he could not be saved. The condition of Brajpal too is said to be critical.

SSP reaches the spot

On receiving information, SSP Anant Dev Tiwari reached the village along with police force. Around two dozen people were detained. No FIR has been registered till now. Amidst the prevailing tension in the village, the SSP has confirmed the death of Akash.

When Aakah’s body arrived on Tuesday afternoon, the angry villagers burnt the tractor of an accused. They demanded compensation for Aakash’s family and refused to perform the funeral and threatened to block the highway. BJP MLA Pramod Untwal, who was trying to convince the crowd, had to bear the fury of the villagers. After a bedlam spanning two and a half hours, ADM (Finance) Sunil Singh promised a compensation of fifteen lakhs and assurance of job to the deceased’s family. It was then that the villagers consented for the funeral. On the other hand, the accused have fled after locking their houses.

Editor’s note

How can a few drops of water spilled accidentally trigger such murderous rage? How can a community which professes to be ‘peace-loving’ give rise to such incidents time and again? Isn’t it time to question the indoctrination and hate for the non-believer which these youth are exposed to during religious sermons, in madrasas and from their community leaders? And notwithstanding the spin that apologists give, what is the message that young, impressionable minds will take from verses like these –

Quran (8:12) – “I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Therefore strike off their heads and strike off every fingertip of them”

Quran (4:89) – “They but wish that ye should reject Faith, as they do, and thus be on the same footing (as they): But take not friends from their ranks until they flee in the way of Allah (From what is forbidden). But if they turn renegades, seize them and slay them wherever ye find them; and (in any case) take no friends or helpers from their ranks.”

All liberals and seculars in the country were up in arms when one Mohammed Akhlak died – why is Aakash’s life worth so much less?

Correction

11 AM, 10 June 2017: A representational image from an earlier communal clash shown on some news sites as part of reports about this incident, was mistakenly interpreted as the image of the injured Brajpal. The image has now been removed, and we regret the error.

(Featured Image Credit : Dainik Jagran)

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