Ghaziabad: Hindu Raksha Dal attacks families of Muslim workers, 2 arrested
The attackers accused them of being nationals of Bangladesh, where members of the Hindu community were allegedly being targeted.
Ghaziabad: Two members of the Hindu Raksha Dal (HRD), a right-wing outfit, allegedly singled out and attacked several families of Muslim workers living in shanties near Guldhar railway station in Ghaziabad on Friday evening, accusing them to be nationals of Bangladesh, where members of the Hindu community were allegedly being targeted following the August 5 ouster of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina after a students’ uprising, police officers aware of the matter said on Saturday.
A Ghaziabad police official on Saturday said the two key accused, HRD chief Bhoopendra Tomar alias Pinki Chowdhary and Badal alias Hari Om, were arrested in this connection.
The incident occurred under the jurisdiction of Madhuban Bapudham police station area around 7.30pm. The land has a presence of about 100-150 shanties, the officers added.
Abhishek Srivastava, assistant commissioner of police, Kavi Nagar circle, said, “A probe has been initiated in the case and a search is on for the suspects. Those attacked were Muslim families, but none of them were from Bangladesh... The supporters of Pinki Chaudhary have been booked.”
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One of the neighbours of the victims, Locho Devi, said: “There were about 30 people who arrived and started attacking four to five families, alleging that they were Bangladeshi nationals... Those attacked were Muslims, and mostly from Shahjahanpur, and their belongings were also burnt. The girls and women were also beaten up and subjected to misbehaviour.”
“We tried to save them, but in vain. Those who were beaten and attacked fled the spot. The attackers also set fire to the belongings of the victims. Police arrived when the damage was already done,” she added.
“Chief of HRD along with 15-20 others attacked and damaged shanties of Muslims living in the area, alleging that they were Bangladeshis. They damaged three to four shanties. We tried to tell them that the Muslims living in the shanties were not from Bangladesh, but the attackers refused to listen to us and continued to beat them up,” the first information report stated.
HRD chief Chaudhary also posted live videos of the incident on social media.
Chaudhary told HT, “HRD members along with me were involved in the incident and we claim full responsibility for the attack. We also know that the police have registered an FIR and a copy is available with us.”
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Chaudhary and his outfit first came to be known in 2014, when he and his associates allegedly led an attack on the Aam Aadmi Party’s office in Kaushambi. In 2016, he contested the mayoral by-polls of the Ghaziabad municipal corporation as an independent candidate and came fourth.
His outfit again made news in January 2020, when it claimed responsibility for the violence on the Jawaharlal Nehru University campus in the Capital.
The First Information Report has been lodged under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections 191(2) (rioting), 354 (act caused by inducing person to believe that he will be rendered an object of divine displeasure), 115(2) (causing voluntary hurt), 117(4) (five or more persons cause hurt to a person on the ground of his race, etc), 299 (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion) and 324(5) (causing damages).
