Hyderabad: Back-to-back communal incidents in and around Hyderabad over the last few weeks have raised concerns of the deterioration of law and order, especially in the Old City.
The incidents have also allowed Right-wing groups to be more active, leading to speculation of political instability under the Congress government which came to power last year in December.
What adds to the anxiety is the month-long ban that began 27 October on gatherings by the Hyderabad Police under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), previously Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC).
The latest in the line of flare-ups was the attack on Pochamma temple of Jokul village in Shamshabad, near Hyderabad airport, Saturday. According to the police, a group of miscreants allegedly entered the temple around midnight and damaged three idols of deities. Locals residents reportedly caught hold of one of them, and thrashed him before he was handed over to the police.
Another incident of desecration of idols took place on 5 November at a Hanuman temple in Shamshabad area. While the police took a suspect into custody, his identity was not revealed. The vandalisation also led to a huge protest by Right-wing groups such as the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal.
While the situation at Shamshabad was contained, the desecration at a temple last month in the Secunderabad area almost led to Right-wing groups attacking a local mosque in retaliation.
On 14 October, a Muslim man entered the Muthyalamma temple’s sanctum in Secunderabad and vandalised the idol. The man was arrested within a day as the entire incident was caught on CCTV. The Hyderabad police’s investigation found out that he was involved in similar incidents in the past as well.
However, a huge group of Bajrang Dal and VHP members gathered near the temple to protest five days later, leading to clashes with policemen. Heavy stone-pelting was also reported during the clashes, which led to at least 15 policemen getting injured.
Such an instance of violence had been unseen in Secunderabad for years, as it is known for its cosmopolitan culture and religious harmony. While the Old City in Hyderabad has seen many such clashes, it has been relatively peaceful in the last 10 years with no major riots being reported.
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A day after the protest at Secunderabad by the Right-wing groups, an inflammatory post on social media resulted in a protest by the Muslims on 21 October in the Rein Bazar area of Hyderabad’s Old City.
Both the back-to-back incidents especially have led to concerns of a law and order breakdown.
“Communal incidents are definitely on the rise under the Congress, as the government is unable to contain them. It is a failure of the government as they are unable to maintain law and order in spite of having advanced technologies. The Shamshabad incident’s accused is a Hindu, but still Right-wing groups held a protest,” said local activist S.Q. Masood, who lives in the Old City of Hyderabad.
He added that in general there is lack of confidence in the police due to such incidents. “Under the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) earlier, there were only minor incidents and the police had always contained any incident. Now, however, things are different. The police are working in fear of the opposition, that is why it is not taking action. There needs to be swifter action,” Masood said.
Prior to the incidents in Hyderabad, several shops belonging to the Muslims were burnt by at least a few thousand tribal community members in Jainoor mandal of Kumaram Bheem-Asifababad district in Telangana in September. The violence was retaliation to a Muslim man’s sexual assault and murder attempt on a tribal woman. Even until now, the shops belonging to Muslims have not been permitted to reopen.
Telangana Director General of Police Jitender told The Print that there is “some enthusiasm among some groups” in the state. “But the most important thing is that they should understand that there are no links in these incidents. If there is, then there is something for us to worry about. We can’t and we are not ignoring these incidents and are taking all precautions. There is nothing for the people of Telangana to worry about,” he explained.
However, a few senior police officers conceded that the change in government after 10 years could also be a reason for communal incidents taking place.
A superintendent of police (SP) told The Print that under the BRS, earlier the opposition did not have much space in general. “Under the Congress opposition is generally more active and that is also allowing Right-wing groups to gather easily and hold protests. We also hold peace committee meetings regularly. I think communal incidents are getting highlighted more now than earlier. As of now, there is nothing to worry about,” the SP added.
One of the advisers to the Telangana government said that Right-wing groups are “certainly” more active ever since the Congress is in power. “The state must give strict instructions to the police to tackle the situation. Earlier, when the BRS was in power, the BJP was close to it so these things were under control. Moreover, this government has new administrators who are in power for the first time, which is why they are yet to get a hang of tackling these situations,” the adviser told The Print.
Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) spokesperson Syed Nizamuddin said that two of the major incidents had a hand of ‘outsiders’. “Many of the accused in Jainoor were in fact from Maharashtra. They were brought to cause trouble. Similarly, the main accused in the Secunderabad idol desecration case is also from Mumbai,” he asserted, adding that the state government would contain communal incidents.
The BJP, however, alleged that there was a “complete breakdown” of law and order in Telangana. “There is a general awareness among the people now that things are not okay. The fact that people can’t gather and fundamental rights are suspended by the police says a lot. If you have intelligence then go after the groups who may cause trouble, or does it mean the police are not sufficient?” BJP Telangana spokesperson Kishore Poreddy said.
(Edited by Tony Rai)