Communalism In India

Communal tensions erupt in Udaipur over stabbing in school; cars burnt

A mob set fire to cars and pelted stones amid communal tension in Udaipur after a class 10 student stabbed another boy at a government school on Friday. Prohibitory orders banning the assembly of people were imposed in the Rajasthan city. It was not immediately known what led to the stabbing at the government school. Members of some Hindu outfits gathered at Madhuban in the city to protest over the stabbing, police said, adding the victim has been admitted in the ICU of the district hospital. Police said a mob pelted stones and set three or four cars on fire. "Additional policemen have been deployed in the area to maintain law and order. The accused has been detained," SP Yogesh Goyal said.

Kanwar directives to ensure peace, quell confusion: UP govt in SC

The Uttar Pradesh government on Friday defended its directive requiring eateries along the Kanwar Yatra route to display the names of their owners and staff, saying the idea was to bring in transparency, avoid "potential confusion" and ensure a peaceful yatra. On July 22, the apex court ordered an interim stay on the directives issued by the BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand governments. "It may be noted that the idea behind the directives is transparency and informed choice of the consumer/kanwaria regarding the food they eat during the period of the Yatra, keeping in mind their religious sentiments so that they don't, even accidently, fall foul of their beliefs," the Uttar Pradesh government said in its reply on pleas challenging the directive. The directives asking eateries along the Kanwar Yatra routes were decried by the opposition as intended to promote religious discrimination. The Uttar Pradesh government said in its submission to the Supreme Court that care is taken

ID card for shops on Kanwar Yatra route reflects hate for Muslims: Owaisi

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal also took a dig at this move asking whether the Kanwar Yatra route is the same as the journey towards 'Viksit Bharat'

Lok Sabha polls marked end of communal politics in India, says Akhilesh

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday said the 2024 Lok Sabha polls marked the end of communal politics in India, and were a moral victory for the INDIA bloc. Participating in the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the president's address, the Kannauj MP called June 4, the day the election results were declared, as the day of independence from communal politics for India. "The whole India has understood that INDIA is pro-India. This election is the moral victory of INDIA. It is a victory of positive politics. It is victory of PDA, social justice movement. 2024's message is also full of responsibility for the INDIA bloc," the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said. "June 4, 2024 was the day of independence from communal politics for India. In this election, communal politics has lost forever," Yadav said. "This election is a new era of positive politics, pro-Constitution people have won, the Constitution has won... It is the end of top-down politics," he said. Referring

BJP should focus on development, instead of communalism: Shashi Tharoor

Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, who won a fourth consecutive time from the Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha seat, on Tuesday said that the poll results were a lesson for the BJP that they do better when they go on other tracks, like development, instead of communalism. Tharoor said that the poll results were also a "serious message by the electorate to the BJP that their kind of governance needs to improve colossally". The Congress leader said that the saffron party will be able to appeal to voters in Kerala only if it goes beyond the "classic sort of north Indian BJP template". "... I always felt that the BJP was hitting a ceiling in Kerala because of the communalism embodied in their messaging. That when they go on other tracks they do better. Whether it was the development track that Rajeev Chandrasekhar espoused here or the conscious outreach to minorities and for sure by Suresh Gopi. "When you go beyond the classic sort of north Indian BJP template, only then can you appeal to vot

LS polls 2024: Development is main issue for PM Modi, says UK CM Dhami

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has asserted that development is the biggest issue for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in this Lok Sabha election. He dismissed the opposition's charge that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was doing Hindu-Muslim politics during campaigning, saying that the prime minister was only telling the country the truth about the opposition parties after they raised issues like personal law and reservations for Muslims. In an interview to PTI-Bhasha, Dhami said the people of the country have seen the work done by the prime minister and he has no doubt that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will win 400 seats. Asked why the BJP was resorting to raising "Hindu-Muslim" issues if it is confident of winning on the basis of the work done by its government, Dhami said, Our main issue is development, but at the same time, it is the responsibility of the party to tell the truth to the people about the opposition parties. "When the Congress manifesto wa

Opposition parties in Assam seek appointment with PM Modi over CAA

Opposition parties in Assam have sought an appointment with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to the state later this week to apprise him of the "volatile situation likely to arise" if the Citizenship (Amendment) Act or CAA is implemented. A letter seeking an appointment with PM Modi was dispatched by state Congress chief Bhupen Borah, who is also the president of the United Opposition Forum of Assam (UOFA) which represents 16 opposition parties. "There is a strong perception among the people of Assam irrespective of caste, creed and political affiliation that the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019 will put in danger the culture, history, socio-economic condition, social fabric and identity of Assamese people," said the letter, a copy of which was shared with the press on Tuesday. "Moreover, the said Act will go to nullify the historic Assam Accord of 1985, which is regarded as the lifeline of Assamese people," it added. The UOFA deems it urgent to apprise the PM about the

Allahabad HC reserves order on plea against puja in Gyanvapi mosque cellar

The Allahabad High Court on Thursday reserved its order on a plea challenging the Varanasi district court's decision to allow Hindu prayers in a cellar of the Gyanvapi mosque. Justice Rohit Ranjan Agrawal heard the appeal filed by the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid committee, which looks after the affairs of the mosque adjacent to the Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi, and reserved its order, committee's lawyer S F A Naqvi said. "The hearing of the matter is complete and the court has reserved its order," Naqvi added. The Anjuman Intezamia Masjid committee moved the high court on February 2 within hours of the Supreme Court refusing to hear its plea against the Varanasi district court order and asking it to approach the high court. The Varanasi district court had ruled on January 31 that a priest can perform prayers before the idols in the southern cellar of the Gyanvapi mosque.

Govt extends ban on SIMI for 5 years for disturbing communal harmony

The government on Monday extended the ban imposed on terrorist group Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) for five years for its involvement in fomenting terrorism and disturbing peace and communal harmony in the country. In a post on 'X', Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that bolstering Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of zero tolerance against terrorism, SIMI has been declared an 'Unlawful Association' for a further period of five years under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). The SIMI was first banned in 2001 when the Atal Bihar Vajpayee government was in power and since then the ban has been extended every five years. "The SIMI has been found involved in fomenting terrorism, disturbing peace and communal harmony to threaten the sovereignty, security and integrity of Bharat," Shah said. In a notification, the Union Home Ministry said the SIMI has been continuing its subversive activities and re-organising its activists who are still absconding; The group

Hindu Sena defaces Babar Road signage in central Delhi, demands renaming

Right-wing outfit Hindu Sena on Saturday defaced the signage for Babar Road in Central Delhi, demanding that it should be renamed. Activists of the outfit pasted a poster with Ayodhya Marg written on it. An official of New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) said they are getting the poster removed and will file a police complaint in the matter. Meanwhile, Hindu Sena president Vishnu Gupta said the outfit has been demanding for a long time that the name Babar Road should be changed.

Hand over keys of basement in Gyanvapi complex to Varanasi DM: Court

A district court has ordered that the keys of the basement located in the Gyanvapi complex here, known as "Vyas ji ka tehkhana", be handed over to the district magistrate. District Judge AK Vishwesh said in his order on Wednesday that there is a need for taking proper care of the basement of Vyas ji located at the southern end of the complex, Hindu side's counsel Madan Mohan Yadav said. "Therefore, district magistrate of Varanasi is appointed receiver of Vyas ji's basement," the court said. Yadav had earlier said that authorities had barricaded and locked the basement in 1993. Prior to it, the basement was used for worship by Somnath Vyas, a priest, Yadav had claimed in his plea.

Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi case: Will continue our fight, says Muslim side

The Supreme Court observed that HC has acted on a vague application seeking omnibus directions. The court noted that the application has to be specific

BJP not interested in Ram Temple, wanted communalisation: Digvijay Singh

In a long post on X, Digvijay Singh said that the Congress never opposed the construction of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya but asked to wait till the court's decision

Section 144 in parts of MP after stone pelting on religious procession

The district administration has imposed prohibitory orders under CrPC Section 144 in three areas of Madhya Pradesh's Shajapur city after some people threw stones on participants of a religious procession following a dispute. One person was injured in the incident which took place in Magaria area on Monday evening, a police official said, adding that adequate security has been deployed in the area and an FIR registered in this connection. Shajapur Collector Riju Bafna in a post on X said Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) has been imposed with immediate effect in three areas - Magaria, Kachhiwada and Lalpura. The situation is currently peaceful and a case has been registered against the miscreants and further legal action is being taken, he said. Seven-eight persons stopped a group of people on Nag-Nagin Road near a mosque at around 8.30 pm on Monday when the latter were taking out a routine evening procession ahead of the Ram temple consecration ceremony in Ayodhya,

Meat shops, religious places to be at least 100 metres apart, says MCD

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has decided to reduce the minimum distance condition for opening a meat shop near any religious place to 100 metres from 150 metres, besides watering down other provisions. The move comes after the civic body drew opposition from meat sellers in the city who feared that the new regulations passed in October would adversely impact nearly 6,000 meat shops under the MCD jurisdiction and may even force many to shut businesses. The MCD, in its last House meeting of 2023 on December 28, gave its nod to a revised proposal introduced as a private member bill by AAP councillors Sultana Aabad and Amin Malik that proposed to decrease the minimum permissible distance between a meat shop and a religious place to 100 metres in densely populated areas along with other changes, an official said Monday. According to the revised proposal, the fee charged for the renewal of the licence for a meat shop has been slashed to Rs 5,000 from Rs 7,000 proposed earlier, the .

Haryana 2023: Communal violence, end of Haryanvis quota in pvt sector

An attack on a religious procession in Nuh, close to the national capital, left six people dead and kept the region, including Haryana's commerce and tech hub Gurugram, on tenterhooks for days this year. Internet services were restricted, schools closed and rumours abounded. During the past year, Haryana's BJP-Jannayak Janta Party government also faced a setback in the Punjab and Haryana High Court when it quashed the state law that allowed 75 per cent reservation in private sector jobs for local people. The JJP, which is the junior partner in the alliance, had pushed for the quota. In any case, the two coalition partners remain reluctant to explicitly state whether they will fight the next election together. Months before the Nuh violence, the state machinery faced flak over the death of two Muslim men from neighbouring Rajasthan whose bodies were found in a charred car in Haryana's Bhiwani district. Their relatives blamed cow vigilantes for the deaths, and the Haryana Police for

ASI submits survey report on Gyanvapi Mosque to Varanasi district court

The report was shared in a sealed cover and the same will be shared with the petitioners on December 21

Telangana elections: KTR warns Muslims against voting for BJP, Congress

KTR was addressing the members of the Muslim community in the state when he said the Muslims should ensure that parties like BJP and the Congress don't use them for their vote bank politics

Nuh Shobha Yatra: Internet suspended, Sec 144 imposed, all you need to know

Police officials in Nuh said 1,900 Haryana Police personnel and 24 companies of paramilitary forces have been deployed

Will teacher be prosecuted or 'hate' culture allowed: Sibal on viral video

After a video of a teacher in Uttar Pradesh allegedly asked her students to slap a boy from a minority community went viral, Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Saturday asked if Prime Minister Narendra Modi will condemn this publicly and the teacher be prosecuted or the culture of "hate" be allowed to flourish. The video purportedly showing a school teacher asking her students to slap a boy from what she is heard referring to as "Mohammaden" community and also passing objectionable remarks against the community has gone viral on social media, with Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra condemning the incident. The teacher can be seen asking the students of class 2 of a private school in Khubbapur village under Mansurpur police station area here to hit the hapless child. In a post on X, Sibal slammed it as "culture of hate" and said that a teacher of a private school in Uttar Pradesh's Muzaffarnagar asked Hindu students to beat up a Muslim student in the classroom. "If .