‘Safe Only So Long As There Is Police In Village’: Brother Of Loten Nishad, 28-Year-Old Killed Over Comment On Tablighi Jamaat

A week has passed since 28-year-old Loten Nishad was murdered by his neighbours for a comment blaming leaders of Muslim organisation Tablighi Jamaat for spreading Covid-19 virus in India.

As Swarajya earlier reported, Loten was shot in his head by attackers who took offence to a member of the Nishad community — former pradhan Deshraj ‘Akela’ — making that comment while reading a newspaper.

Loten became a target for belonging to Deshraj’s community as the mob charged at them with cries of “these Nishads should not be spared”.

On the statement of Loten’s elder brother Birju, the police booked Sadiq, Sebu, Zakir, Noor Akhtar, Shadaab and Farooq, Farhan, two men named Naushad and six-seven unidentified people for the murder, some of whom are still absconding.

The incident took place in Bakshi Morha village of Prayagraj district in Uttar Pradesh on 5 April.

The village continues to be heavily guarded by security personnel, Birju told this correspondent on 11 April.

Birju, 38, says his family is living in constant fear and dreads the time when the security would be relaxed or taken off the village. He says that several men and women from the Nishad community have said that they have been threatened by the village Muslims.

“Some of our men and women have been going to their fields. They have returned and told us that Muslim men threatened them with consequences when the security is taken away,” says Birju.

“It’s because we dared to give written and verbal statements to the police. It is based on the statements that the police are making arrests.”

‘We are safe only so long as there is police In the village,’ says brother of Loten Nishad, who was killed over comment on Tablighi Jamaat.

Just after the murder, Birju told this correspondent that the family has no option now other than eventually migrating out of the village in the coming months. “Dushmani bandh hi gayi hai. Jaana hi padega. Abhi police bhaari sankhya mein tainaat hai. Kal nahi rahegi [we have become their rivals now. We have no option but to go. The police are deployed in huge numbers right now, but they won’t remain here forever],” he had said.

Asked where he can possibly migrate to, Birju says there are some Nishad-dominated villages nearby such as Sadiyapur, Karaila Bagh and Saidpur. Even though Bakshi Morha itself is Nishad-dominated in terms of population, Muslims, who belong to Gaddi caste, have increased their influence in the past years, he says. “Despite our village being 70 per cent Hindus and 30 per cent Muslims, we have a Muslim pradhan. So you can understand their dominance,” he says.

Another reason for Birju’s fear is that the local police have taken away his “licensed single-barrel gun”. Birju says he uses the gun for his job as a night guard for a building in the area.

“SHO (station house officer) sir came and took away my gun. The gun is the reason why I can do my job as a night guard. Since the day of the murder, when the police took my weapon away, I have not gone for work.”

“Until I get it back, I cannot go to work. My earning from the job is the only stable income in the family,” he says. “The Muslims know it, which makes us even more vulnerable to attacks.”

After the murder, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had directed authorities to charge the accused under the National Security Act (NSA) and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the family of the deceased.

Birju says the administration has helped open a bank account in the name of Loten’s wife Savita and hopes that the compensation would be credited soon.

“Our father died long ago. I raised my younger brother and got him married. He is no more now, and has left behind a wife and three children. Our only hope of survival is the government help, however long it lasts,” he says.