Meerut: Mob Attacks Dalit Devotees To Oppose Loudspeakers In Temple Situated Near Mosque

Enraged by the devotional songs played on loudspeakers, a Muslim mob reportedly entered a Hindu temple in Ghasauli village near Meerut and assaulted a group of Dalit men, reports OpIndia.

The Muslim community had been objecting the installation of loudspeakers on the temple premises, which is near a mosque.

What started as a vocal objection, soon assumed the proportions of violence as the mob attacked the temple and Dalit men present there with lathis and sticks. Reportedly, the Dalit group was thrashed and assaulted by sharp objects. The mob also started pelting stones.

The police arrived at the location and brought the situation under control. Six people; Akram, his brothers Karim and Saddam, Zulfikar s/o Sayeed, Abdul Rahim Pudhh Nawabuddin and Arif s/o Riyazuddin were arrested.

Several similar incidents of violence on the pretext of opposing loudspeakers suggest a politics to create an atmosphere of fear.

In a similar incident in Pilibhit, giving the reason as opposing the loudspeakers, a mob had vandalised a Hindu temple. The attackers even took away the idols of the deities along with the loudspeakers. The police arrested five -- Mehboob, Monis, Israel, Azaad and Alanoor -- and charged them for attempting to disturb the communal harmony.

In another scenario, Devulla Satyanarayana Sharma, a 68-year-old priest of the Sai Baba Mandir in Warangal, Telangana, was attacked and killed by one Imam Sayeed Sadhiq Hussain for playing devotional songs on loudspeakers. The Imam thrashed the priest after the latter refused to switch-off the loudspeaker.