New Delhi: National Commission for Minorities chairperson Iqbal Singh Lalpura Friday said the commission gets around 1,500 complaints annually, but no hate crime involving communities have been reported in the past three years. He was responding to AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi’s claim on social media that attacks on Muslims had surged after the Lok Sabha poll results.
“The commission has received complaints of hate crimes related to individuals, but no hate crime where communities are involved has been reported to the commission in the past three years. There has been no case where one community has attacked another community. Most complaints that we have received are related to property or matrimonial disputes,” Lalpura said at a press conference on the commission’s 100-day plan.
According to Lalpura, the violence in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri in April 2022 and Haryana’s Nuh in 2023 “were not community hate crimes”.
Hyderabad MP-elect Owaisi had posted on social media platform X Thursday: “After the election results, incidents of attacks on Muslims are increasing in many parts of the country. Two Maulanas were murdered in Uttar Pradesh, Muslim houses were bulldozed in Akbar Nagar (Uttar Pradesh), two Muslims were lynched in Chhattisgarh. Is the Sangh Parivar taking revenge against Muslims?”
चुनाव के नतीजों के बाद मुल्क के कई हिस्सों में मुसलमानों पर हमलों के वाक़ि'आत बढ़ रहे हैं।
उत्तर प्रदेश में 2 मौलानाओं का क़त्ल कर दिया गया, अकबरनगर में मुसलमानों के घर पर बुलडोज़र चला दिया गया, छत्तीसगढ़ में दो मुसलमानों को Lynch कर दिया गया।
क्या संघ परिवार मुसलमानों से बदला…
— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) June 13, 2024
Asked about it, Lalpura said: “These statements are made to misguide people. I would request Mr Owasis to send me the details of the cases; we will take up the issue. We have taken up all the issues where complaints have been made to the commission.”
In Chhattisgarh’s Raipur last week, two Muslim men who were transporting cattle were found dead. They were allegedly chased and killed by unidentified people.
Two Muslim clerics were allegedly murdered in separate incidents in Moradabad and Shamli.
The Lucknow Development Authority Monday started a demolition drive against illegal structures, including shops and houses, in the city’s Akbar Nagar. The drive is reportedly being carried out after the Supreme Court last month upheld the Allahabad High Court’s order on demolishing unauthorised structures in the locality.
Also Read: Nuh violence has 3 takeaways for Hindus & Muslims. There’s hope amid the chaos too
100-day agenda: Meeting of all religious leaders
To ensure harmony between religious communities, National Commission for Minorities is planning to organise a number of meetings with religious leaders, youth, etc.
A ‘Sarv Dharm’ meeting of all religious leaders has been set for 20 June. “We will invite heads of all important religious bodies, including the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind, for harmony and inclusivity,” said Lalpura, adding that as part of the 100-day plan, the commission will also hold seminars in colleges.
The commission members are also planning to visit the new Ram Mandir in June-end. While the visit had been planned for February this year, Lalpura said it couldn’t take place due to security reasons.
“The UP administration told us that they will not be able to provide security and if members want to visit individually, they can come. We then decided to postpone the plan. We are planning to go after the Sarv Dharm meeting,” he said.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
Also Read: Nuh violence got India’s attention, but Mewat wasn’t always communal