Haryana Situation Still Remains Tense

The situation remained tense in Haryana’s Nuh district on Thursday as motorcycle-borne assailants hurled Molotov cocktails at two mosques in Tauru town. Both the mosques — one near Vijay Chowk and another near a police station — suffered some damage.  No person was, however, injured in these incidents that took place at around 11.30 pm on Wednesday night.

The state police along with the paramilitary forces carried out flag marches in four villages in Nuh, where communal violence broke out on Monday. The violence spilled over into neighbouring Gurgaon on Tuesday, with mobs killing a Muslim cleric, torching an eatery and vandalising shops. So far, six people have died, 176 people arrested and about 100 others detained in the state. As many as 93 FIRs have been registered in five districts, including 46 in Nuh, 23 in Gurgaon and 18 in Palwal.

Nuh SP Varun Singla said 14 companies of the paramilitary forces have been called from outside while 21 companies of the state police have already been deployed in Nuh. He said four fresh cases have been lodged in the district in the last 24 hours.

The state government is now planning to set up a Rapid Action Force Centre in Mewat. It has also constituted a committee to monitor social media platforms to prevent provocative material/ videos/ photographs/ hate speech from being circulated so that law and order and communal harmony is maintained. The committee will coordinate with all relevant agencies to take corrective measures in his regard.

Haryana home minister Anil Vij appealed to the people to maintain peace. “People should not post or forward provocative posts on the social media. The investigation is underway,” he said.

Mobile internet and SMS services in Nuh and some other places in the state, which were suspended till August 5, were restored for three hours from 1 pm on Thursday. The Internet curbs had been imposed to prevent any disturbance to the peace and public order. Besides Nuh, the services had also been snapped in Faridabad, Palwal and the territorial jurisdiction of Sohna, Pataudi and Manesar sub-divisions of Gurgaon district.

The Haryana government  had issued the order relaxing the Internet suspension to facilitate the candidates appearing for the Haryana CET “Group C exam”, which is scheduled later this week, so that they can download their admit cards, an official statement said. “As per the recommendation of the ADGP, CID… the (earlier) orders are hereby partially withdrawn/relaxed only for today, that is 03.08.2023 from 1300 hrs to 1600 hrs, in respect of districts Nuh, Faridabad, Palwal and the territorial jurisdiction of subdivisions Sohna, Pataudi and Manesar of Gurgaon district. All services be restored accordingly for the said period only,” according to the order issued by additional chief secretary (home) T.V.S.N. Prasad.

The BJP has raised questions about the Congress’ role in the communal violence in Haryana, saying the clashes that took place between the two communities were “part of a larger conspiracy” and the truth will come out during the investigation.

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters, BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said Congress MLA Mamman Khan’s “provocative statement” on the floor of the Haryana Legislative Assembly and his social media posts raise suspicion about the party’s role in the violence.

“Congress MLA Mamman Khan had given a provocative statement on the floor of the Haryana Assembly. His social media post and video were tantamount to inciting violence. This raises deep suspicion,” the BJP spokesperson said.

The violence that took place in Haryana was “part of a larger conspiracy” and the truth will come out during the investigation of the case, he said. “Mamman Khan's provocative statement, his video and social media post raise a big question mark on the (role of) the Congress,” Trivedi charged.