Court to hear plea seeking ban on namaz at Sambhal mosque on July 21
The petition was filed by Simran Gupta, national president of the Hindu Shakti Dal. Civil judge (senior division) Aditya Singh admitted the plea on Thursday and scheduled the next hearing for July 21.
The petitioner argued that allowing religious activities such as namaz at a site already declared 'disputed' by the court could hinder an impartial investigation. The plea sought the sealing of the Shahi Jama Masjid and the transfer of its custody to the district magistrate for neutral oversight until the court delivers a final verdict on the site's religious identity.
Gupta contended that no religious practices, whether namaz or puja, should be permitted at the site until its historical and religious character is conclusively established. She further claimed that allowing only one religious group to continue worship might create perceptions of bias and risk communal tension. Advocate Babulal Saxena is representing her in court.
The origin of the dispute dates back to November 19, 2023, when eight Hindu petitioners claimed the Shahi Jama Masjid stood on the site of an ancient Shri Harihar Temple. Responding to the petition, the court ordered a survey of the mosque premises on the same day, followed by a second survey on November 24.
The second survey led to violent clashes, resulting in the deaths of four people and injuries to 29 police personnel. In the aftermath, police launched a wide-scale crackdown and filed FIRs against 2,750 people, including Samajwadi Party MP Ziaur Rehman Barq and mosque committee chairman Zafar Ali.
So far, 96 individuals have been jailed in connection with the violence. The matter also reached the Allahabad High Court, which allowed proceedings in the lower court to continue.
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First Post
17 minutes ago
- First Post
Nearly a year after Hasina's exit, stability still eludes Bangladesh
August 5, 2025, marks one year since former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina sought refuge in India, following a wave of violent unrest across Bangladesh that left widespread destruction and countless lives lost. Many in the country had hoped that her departure would bring a return to order and stability. Instead, the situation has deteriorated sharply, with law and order collapsing on multiple fronts. A stark example of this is the recent violence in Gopalganj — a traditional stronghold of the Awami League (AL) and home to a significant Hindu minority, comprising nearly 40 per cent of the population of the area. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The National Citizen Party (NCP), which is believed to enjoy open backing of the ruling dispensation of Muhammad Yunus, in active collaboration with Jammat-e-Islami (JeI) and other communally fanatical parties, resorted to unprovoked violence in attacking the Awami League activists in Gopalganj in an ostensible bid to weaken the AL bastion and demoralise the Hindu population, keeping aloft the communal frenzy. Several people were killed by the security forces, and at the time of writing the column, the city is filled with tension and uneasy calm notwithstanding the imposition of stringent prohibitory orders and security forces resorting to indiscriminate firing resulting in deaths and injuries, and the paramilitary forces and the army are seen in clear visuals protecting the NCP and Jammat activists in the hold of the Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs) to save them lest their crime be exposed. This spurt of violence in Gopalganj signals that the law and order machinery is still far from satisfactory. Also, according to a prominent Dhaka Daily, Prothom Alo (July 17), the commemorative march marking the July 2024 uprising was planned well in advance by the NCP and its affiliates, and the authorities were obviously indifferent to any wake-up calls or straws in the wind. This also shows complete failure of the intelligence apparatus of the government. Interestingly, the advisor in charge of law and order, Lieutenant General (Retired) Jahangir Alam Chowdhary, is not only an army veteran but also headed the then Bangladesh Rifles (BDR), now renamed as Bangladesh Border Guards (BGB). The ineptitude on the part of the general speaks of a complete lack of oversight in reining in the disturbing law and exercising order and control over the national intelligence with far-reaching security implications. Now, two things are glaring and can't be ignored. One, the Hindus will be more vulnerable in Gopalganj in particular, and the cascading effects of the ensuing violence are likely to reverberate in other Hindu pockets in Bangladesh, where they could possibly be the target of violence, with their places of worship and immovable property more vulnerable to the communal elements. Two, with the tacit support of the interim regime under Muhammad Yunus, anti-AL forces, including the NCP and the Jammat, in all probability, will be emboldened to take on the AL cadres in order to further decimate them. And three, by implication, it is largely believed that the AL and Sheikh Hasina, perceived to be India-inclined, anti-India rhetoric will escalate further amongst the vernacular media and other quarters of the political and social entities. After dwelling upon the Gopalganj violent clashes, which are still fresh in minds, exposing the government's abject failure to contain public order and lawlessness, it would be imperative to examine what all happened within the year post-Hasina's departure from Dhaka. Subsequent to Hasina's departure, complete anarchy prevailed all over Bangladesh, indicating there was no government control or semblance of any law and order. The communal elements, robbers, and criminals had a field day for several months, looting and vandalising at their free will. There were hundreds of prisoners, including hardened criminals, who escaped from the prison, and not only that, there were outrageous lootings of the armouries, broad daylight dacoities, and murders. In addition, the communal elements attacked various minority groups, including Ahmadiyas, Shias, Sufis, etc, and their places of worship were openly desecrated and vandalised. Hindu places of worship were targeted in particular, and many temples were attacked, and their idols were defiled and destroyed. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD While stock taking of the major violent happenings in Bangladesh during the post-Hasina period, it would also be pertinent to highlight the lawlessness when the unbridled violent mob brought down the residence of the father of the nation, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, looting all the pieces kept in the residence-turned-museum and destroying precious possessions reminiscent of the bloody freedom struggle of 1971. Analytically, this shows the mindset of a large number of ungrateful people who shamelessly tampered with history, destroying all evidence of the Liberation War. Sadly, the government, the military, and various arms of police forces were mute witnesses to the destruction, leading the people to believe that there was indeed a government complicity in turning a blind eye when the perpetrators carried out this mindless violent act. Under the circumstances, it would also appear desirable to touch upon some other occurrences in the aftermath of Hasina's departure from the political scene, which had a profound negative impact on the social, political, and cultural fabric of Bangladesh. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD The most disturbing development was the present regime's steady proximity towards Pakistan, which once unleashed such highhandedness with immense ferocity by committing genocide in 1971 without so far tendering any apology for the large cases of violation of Bengali women by Pakistani occupation forces and the grotesque inhuman acts on the Bengalis before the liberation. While it is politically alright for Bangladesh to befriend Pakistan, amnesia should not be to the extent of conveniently forgetting atrocities once so viciously committed. To illustrate further, it would perhaps be politically unwise to observe Pakistan's founder Muhammad Ali Jinnah's 76th death anniversary being held in the National Press Club, Dhaka, in the presence of the Pakistani Deputy High Commissioner. It may be recapitulated that Jinnah, who was anti-Bengali and anti-Bangla, always opposed the use of the Bengali language in place of Urdu. In sum, involving the Pakistani High Commission and remembering Jinnah is indeed a departure from the past and an endorsement of Jinnah's two-nation theory and anti-Bangla ideology. This has also hit hard the secular forces within Bangladesh, the progressives and liberals as well as the freedom fighters and pro-liberation forces. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In another development post Hasina, there were demands for renaming one of the hostels of Dhaka University to Allama Muhammad Iqbal, who was chiefly responsible for supporting the idea of a separate Pakistan. This trend also merits a close watch as to whether the intelligentsia of Bangladesh is moving towards a direction with Pakistani leanings. In a different vein, it would also appear that there is a subtle move to remove the powerful presence of Tagore amongst the Bangladeshi minds, as he had influenced Bengalis in a big way in the fields of music, dance, literature, drama, etc. A mob vandalised the historic Rabindra Kacharibari in Bangladesh's Sirajganj district, which has an ancestral mansion of Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore, and attacked the auditorium on the mansion premises and assaulted its director in the month of June this year. Following the attack, authorities in Bangladesh shut down the site and formed a probe panel to investigate the incident. It could, however, be an eyewash. It is an irony that this act of vandalism drew more criticism in India than in Bangladesh. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Meanwhile, another unfortunate incident has come to the fore, which speaks poorly of the Yunus administration and its vision to keep things under control. The old heritage ancestral property belonging to film icon Satyajit Ray's paternal grandfather, Upendra Kishore Ray Chowdhury, was demolished in the district of Mymensingh in Bangladesh very recently to make way for a new semi-concrete structure for Shishu Academy. This bizarre step has naturally hurt the sentiments of hundreds and thousands of Satyajit Ray's fans all over India, leading the governments of India and West Bengal to protest and stop the demolition. Such an outrageous act on the part of the Bangladesh authorities also shows that the Yunus-led administration in Bangladesh is completely insensitive to the sentiments of heritage and ancestral property of Upendra Kishore Ray Chowdhury, who was a noted writer and academic, plus a prominent and progressive social reformer. The strong appeal by the Indian side has forced the government of Bangladesh to rethink the demolition, as it would again expose the present Bangladesh regime in a dim light. Such a glaring amiss, which was perhaps unthinkable during the previous regime, and, therefore, it is important to highlight this while auditing the performance of the present regime in the last nearly one year. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD In an ultimate assessment, it is clear in the preceding year, the present regime has failed to meet people's expectations in the maintenance of law and order, safety and security of the minorities and their places of worship and properties, controlling the communal and fundamentalist forces, or even checking the economic downturn. The government, according to the analysts, has also failed miserably to improve ties with India, with no signs of any improvement. The government-controlled media continues to be hostile and biased amid a sharp rise in human rights abuses as charged by many. It is likely that these factors will play a dominant part in the upcoming elections scheduled some time next year. In fact, a large segment of the population is so miserable and disillusioned that they are silently wanting Hasina's rule back again, perhaps for an orderly and tranquil regime with their dignity intact. The writer is a retired IPS officer, adviser NatStrat, Bangladesh watcher and a security analyst. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost's views. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD
Indian Express
an hour ago
- Indian Express
Till khap do us part: Haryana interfaith couple forced to stay separated as panchayat orders annulment
It's difficult to say what angered the villagers more and the couple's interfaith marriage or the fact that the groom and the bride belonged to the same village. The July 3 marriage of a 25-year-old Muslim man and a 24-year-old Hindu woman from Mehrana village in Haryana's Charkhi Dadri district shattered many unwritten rules set by the villagers. From 'dent to izzat (honour)' brought by the interfaith relationship to violation of age-old customs practised by the residents, their marriage drew the ire of not one but three villages in the neighbourhood. On Sunday (July 20), Haa khap panchayat called by residents of Mehrana and those of neighbouring Kheri Sanwal and Patuwas villages pronounced its 'verdict' on the marriage — it has to be annulled at the earliest possible, according to Chaju Ram, 63, a cattle farmer who attended the meeting. 'Two other decisions were also taken at the Athgama khap. The girl (bride) has to marry someone else who is not from any of the three villages. The boy (groom) cannot live in the village (Mehrana) and his family will be boycotted indefinitely,' he said. 'Yeh hamari purani parampara hain. Desh itna bara hai… Aap ko 15 km ke andar hi kisi se shadi kyun karni hai (This is our age-old tradition. This country is so huge, why do you have to marry someone who lives within 15 km of your village)?' he said. The couple and their families are already bearing the brunt of the villagers' wrath. While the groom has left the village, his parents have been living under police protection since July 7. The bride, who is pursuing her Master's from a Rohtak college, is staying with her parents in Prem Nagar area in the district. Asked if the couple was being forced to stay separated, Bhupender Sanwal, a resident of Mehrana and former sarpanch, said: 'You tell me, is it right for such a couple to stay together, even if married?' He said the couple's families have been asked to immediately initiate a formal nullification of the marriage through legal process. Another villager, on condition of anonymity, said it has been a tradition to treat girls in the village as sisters, and any other relationship is 'wrong'. Chaju Ram claimed that the woman, who belongs to a Scheduled Caste, was made to convert to Islam in front of two witnesses arranged by the man, and the conversion has been reversed after the village's intervention. The woman has sworn in an affidavit that she has returned to her previous faith, another villager said. The police, however, said they did not have information on any conversion being carried out. The couple, who got married on July 3, got police protection from court on July 6 and moved to a safe house on July 8, said the police. They were released from the safe house on July 10 on their request, the police said. According to villagers, the woman was taken by her parents to their Prem Nagar home, while the man was denied entry in the village by his grandfather. The grandfather, Jaleddin, a retired Armyman, said with folded hands, 'The villagers have taken their decision. I cannot and do not want to say anything more now. My mental balance is not right.' Mehrana sarpanch Mukesh Grover was not available for a comment. The family of the woman did not wish to speak on the issue. The police maintain that the atmosphere in the village is peaceful. 'Police personnel were present during the panchayat meeting. We do not know what decisions were taken but the village has remained peaceful. We have not received any complaints from the villagers or the couple,' said Charkhi Dadri DSP (Headquarters) Dheeraj Kumar. The villagers, meanwhile, remain on the edge. 'If the boy (groom) returns, it can definitely get physical (violent). Anything can happen,' Ram said. A police officer said nobody can stop the man from returning to the village and boycotts are not necessarily followed by more than a handful of villagers. Policemen have been posted at the man's home as a precaution to prevent any untoward incident, the officer said.
News18
2 hours ago
- News18
Tagore Statue, Bangladesh Hindus & More: TMC Tries To Corner BJP With Tough Questions In Parliament
It appears that many Parliamentary questions listed by TMC MPs in both houses are aligning with the party's aggressive 'Bengali Asmita' campaign against the BJP. Days after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee led a protest march from Kolkata's College Street to Esplanade against the alleged harassment of Bengali-speaking migrants in BJP-ruled states and threatened with a 'second Bhasha Andolan" (language movement), it appears that many Parliamentary questions listed by TMC MPs in both houses are aligning with the party's aggressive 'Bengali Asmita' campaign against the BJP. On Thursday, TMC's Rajya Sabha MP Ritabrata Banerjee will put forth a question for the Ministry of Culture that may pose a challenge for the Bengal BJP. Banerjee will inquire whether there is indeed no statue of Rabindranath Tagore at the Jallianwala Bagh memorial. If the answer is affirmative, he will seek the reasons for its absence and question whether there are any plans to install Tagore's statue at the memorial soon. For those unfamiliar, Tagore returned his Knighthood in 1919 to protest against the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, which deeply moved him. Estimates of the dead vary from 379 to 1,500 or more. Every Bengali learns about Tagore's revulsion from a young age. The TMC, aiming to harness the 'Bangaliyana' sentiment, hopes for a straightforward answer devoid of political bias, which could sway voter sentiment in the state against the BJP. India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) reported 23 Hindu deaths in Bangladesh between early August 2024 and early 2025, linked to violence, along with 152 temple attacks. Between November 26, 2024, and January 25, 2025, there were 76 reported anti-Hindu incidents. Any careless response could have significant political repercussions, and the TMC is waiting patiently for such a slip. Ghose will also ask whether the Ministry is maintaining records on the number of individuals from the Hindu community who have been victims of attacks in Bangladesh. Furthermore, she will inquire if S Jaishankar's External Affairs Ministry has taken up the matter with the Government of Bangladesh and whether any official fact-finding team has been sent or is planned to be sent to the neighboring nation currently facing civil disturbances. As TMC has intensified its attack on BJP, the BJP has also sharpened its counter by accusing TMC of helping 'Bangladeshis" obtain Indian documents. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, in the Upper House, TMC's Parliamentary Leader in Rajya Sabha Derek O'Brien listed unstarred questions to the Minister of Home Affairs. He asked for details of funds requested by states and disbursed under the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF) for the rehabilitation of disaster-displaced people over the last five years, year-wise and disaster-wise. This question is significant because just a week ago, Mamata Banerjee accused the Centre of denying flood relief funds to West Bengal. She alleged that while Assam receives aid, West Bengal struggles with floods caused by water release from DVC reservoirs – a charge the DVC denied. O'Brien also inquired whether the Government plans to consult states for introducing any national framework aimed at the long-term rehabilitation of internally displaced people due to disasters, seeking details if such plans exist or reasons for their absence if they do not. This aligns with TMC's broader Bengali pride campaign. This monsoon session, TMC MPs have posed some tricky parliamentary questions. The ultimate outcome depends on the responses provided, determining whether TMC or BJP will have the last laugh. Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
