‘Anti-Muslim slogans’: Owaisi gives adjournment motion in Lok Sabha, Delhi Police register FIR

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 9

The two gatherings – one on August 6 at Dwarka and another on August 8 at Jantar Mantar – where anti-Muslim slogans were allegedly raised by participants are set to storm Parliament, as Asaduddin Owaisi of AIMIM has given an adjournment motion in Lok Sabha to discuss the issues as of “urgent public importance”. 

In the notice, Owaisi said, “On Friday (August 6) in Dwarka, Delhi, a mahapanchayat was organised to oppose construction of a proposed Haz House. At the mahapanchayat, speeches were made and slogans were raised against Muslim citizens. On August 8, a gathering at Jantar Mantar raised slogans against Muslim citizens.”

In the notice, he also alleged that no action had been taken against “organisers/participants of either of the gatherings”.

He said, “Since law and order and police are responsibility of Government of India and since Delhi has witnessed a communal violence just last year, it is important to adjourn business to discuss this matter of urgent public importance.”

Earlier, Delhi Police said that they had registered an FIR under various sections of the IPC, including 153-A (promoting enmity among different social groups) against unknown persons a day after “inflammatory, anti-Muslim slogans” were allegedly raised at Jantar Mantar during an event against “colonial-era-laws” in the country and also “bringing uniform civil laws”.

The police in the FIR said the organisers of the event had no permission to hold the event, so Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and violation of the DDMA Act pertaining to Covid protocol violations had been added.

According to police sources, the rally was called by Delhi BJP ex-spokesperson Aswani Upadhyay. On Monday morning, Upadhyay sent a text message to the police claiming that some people had tried to malign the event and he left the venue soon after it ended at 12.15 pm.

DCP (New Delhi district) Deepak Yadav said, “A case has been registered under relevant sections of law. The investigation is in progress.”

The rally had hundreds of people in attendance, police officials said, while claiming that the purported videos of the event showed people shouting slogans threatening harm to Muslims.

Reacting to the development, activist Shabnam Hashmi tweeted: “Highly communal, Islamophobia demonstration took place at Jantar Mantar on August 8 in the presence of police. When I sent d video to DCP I was asked to file complaint. Is it my duty to stop hate speech? Has police been told to close its eyes to hate speeches by Sangh?”