Villages around Dadri’s Bishada on high alert
Villages surrounding Bishada in Dadri have been put on high alert as the residents of these areas have begun organising panchayats demanding the registration of a case against the family of 50- year- old Mohammad Ikhlaq for alleged cow slaughter and beef consumption.
The villages under Dadri tehsil put on alert include Ucha Hamirpur, Samana, Sapnawat, Patadi, Rasoolpur and Chithera. Amidst threats of a mahapanchayat, Jaan Mohammad, the brother of Mohammad Ikhlaq who was lynched nine months ago over beef- eating rumours, appealed for peace. “With folded hands I appeal for calm. Don’t bury your brotherhood. Even if one drop of blood is shed, it will give me more pain than my brother’s murder,” he told a TV channel. Eighteen people were arrested following the lynching, including two juveniles one of whom is out on bail.
Fear stalks the Muslim families in Bishada. Recalling the peace and harmony that once existed here, Muslim housewife Rukhsana wanted to know “why things cannot be the same again”.
Local BJP leader Sanjay Rana, whose son Vishal is one of the prime accused in the lynching, was in no mood to “spare those who slaughter cows”. He has demanded that cases be registered against Ikhlaq’s family members and that the compensation given to his family be “taken back”. The state government had given the brothers LIG flats in Greater Noida as compensation and Ikhlaq’s sons and wife were given ` 50 lakh and an LIG flat in Greater Noida. Ikhlaq’s family shifted out of Bishada a week after the incident in September 2015.
Mr Sanjay Rana and his namesake, the panchayat chief at Bishada, told this newspaper there was tremendous pressure to “call a mahapanchayat”.
Local BJP leader Sanjay Rana and his namesake, the panchayat chief at Bishada, made it clear on Tuesday that the people “will wait for the 20- day deadline to expire and then a final decision will be taken ( to call a mahapanchayat and decide their course of action)”. The residents of Bishada village on Monday gave the authorities 20 days to register an FIR against the slain Mohammed Ikhlaq’s family after a lab report said the meat found at the Ikhlaq’s house was beef.
The BJP leader warned: “If they fail to register cases against Ikhlaq’s family, a mahapanchayat will be called and the administration will be responsible for the consequences.” The family members of the accused in the Dadri lynching case had met BJP MP Yogi Adityanath and said he had “assured us all possible help”, BJP leader Sanjay Rana said.
On the issue of launching an FIR against Ikhlaq’s family, DSP Anurag Kumar said he had received a letter from SSP Dharmendra Singh on Tuesday to probe whether an FIR against the victim’s family is needed.
On the question of villagers openly defying prohibitory orders at Dadri by holding panchayats, the DSP claimed, “We have been assured that these panchayats will be peaceful and nobody will violate the law. As long as the panchayats are peaceful, the police has no problem.” He claimed that Monday’s panchayat at Bishada, at which the 20- day deadline was issued, was held under his and Dadri SDM Rajesh Singh’s “supervision”.
After the lynching, some Muslim families reportedly left Bishada for fear of reprisal. Those who were found still living there claimed that they were “too poor to settle elsewhere”.
Mohammed Idris, who runs a barber shop at Bishada, told this newspaper, “It’s not safe here anymore.” Mr Idris, who said “hardly any customer comes to my shop after the incident”, added that “tension has increased after the lab report claimed that the meat found at Ikhlaq’s house was that of a cow”. Mohammed Akram, a local carpenter, said, “We are living in constant fear.” Visibly shaken, he asked, “What is our fault? We have not done anything. Punish those who slaughtered the cow. We did not know anything.”