Hyderabad: In view of a public uproar over sedition charges against two women by the Saidabad police for criticising the Supreme Court verdict on the Ayodhya matter after performing namaz at the Eidgah Ujale Shah, home minister Mahmood Ali ordered an inquiry into the matter. The women have, however, not been arrested yet.
Home Minister Ali said, “Muslims not only from Hyderabad but also from Delhi have been upset with the filing of these charges. They have asked me to look into it. I have ordered an inquiry into the incident and we will look into it.”
Mr Ali stated that the government and police have to do their duty to maintain law and order in the state. “Peace has to be maintained. When ulemas across India had agreed that they would abide by the Supreme Court judgement, why have these women come out to protest?” he asked.
The home minister said that Saidabad was a highly sensitive area and it was duty of police to ensure that there were no untoward incidents.
The sections charged against the women including sedition, act of being prejudicial to maintenance of harmony, promoting enmity between different groups and defilement of places of worship.
Amjedullah Khan of Majlis Bachao Tehreek (MBT) said, “It is not clear why these charges have been put by the police. The women had congregated in an edigah, where they offered namaz. It was within those four walls. The police could have brushed it aside. By pressing charges, they have created an issue and brought it to limelight. The videos circulating around are not clear. How can 30 to 50 women threaten a country?”
Cases have been registered against Ms Shabista and Zille Huma, against whom Din Dayal Singh complained, saying they raised provocative slogans. The judgement of the Supreme Court was also severely criticised, and they tried to provoke others of the Muslim community to also do the same.
Senior community members said that there were videos circulating on social media now from Gujarat, Karnataka and Maharashtra but nowhere have police filed cases. When Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ruled states are not indulging in registering cases why was the Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) government doing it, asked some members of the Muslim community.
