Haryana: Hate speech, call to arms at Nuh mahapanchayat

The members from Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) gathered for a mahapanchayat in Palwal, where hate speeches targeting Muslim community were made.

Hundreds of Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) members joined a mahapanchayat in Palwal on Sunday and said they will go on a religious procession in a village in the Nuh district later this month, less than a fortnight after their previous attempt led to communal clashes in the area before it spread to more districts in Haryana.

A mahapanchayat in Palwal on Sunday. (HT Photo)

The event, attended by thousands from the right-wing Hindu groups in three states — Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan — had many attendees making hate speeches that targeted the Muslim community directly and indirectly, including by the use of Islamophobic pejorative.

Among the demands made in angry speeches were for “lessons to be taught”, Hindu families to be armed, and the district of Nuh, where Muslims are in majority, to be dissolved and merged with others. Many of the attendees carried arms, and the turnout, estimated at 5,000, was close to ten times the permission that was granted for the event.

Lokender Singh, Palwal superintendent of police, said several conditions were laid down before the event was approved, and members were asked to ensure peace and harmony. “They were asked not to deliver any hate speech and not to indulge in any communal clash. Heavy police deployment was around the venue and on the routes to keep a check on vehicular movement,” he said.

Police officials later did not respond to requests for comments on the nature of speeches and threats made at the event.

On July 31, the Brajmandal Dharmik Yatra was disrupted after stone pelting and clashes. Among the triggers for the Hindu-Muslim conflagration was a video by Monu Manesar, a fugitive cow vigilante wanted for the deaths of two Muslim men in February, that he would attend the procession.

The attendees of the event on Sunday say they will complete the procession on August 28 from Nalhar village in Nuh.

“We will take appropriate steps when they seek permission from the government,” Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar said, according to news agency ANI.

Among the speakers was one person who, referring to the Muslim community, said: “If you raise a finger, we will cut off your hands”. One of the organisers, who asked not to be named, said the speakers were warned not to indulge in hate speeches but some “got carried away”.

The committee members of the mahapanchayat demanded an investigation by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) into the July 31 violence in Nuh, a payout of ₹1 crore compensation to families of the dead, and jobs for their kin. They also sought that damages be recovered from the accused.

Kulbhushan Bhardwaj, a member of Bajrang Dal, said Hindu families living in Nuh were still under threat, and that the procession on August 28 will go ahead “no matter what — even if the authorities deny us permission”.

“We want arms licences for each Hindu family for their safety and security in the Nuh district. Many families and devotees have suffered huge losses during the violence that should be paid after suspects’ properties are sold or directly recovered by them — no matter how,” he added.

Ajeet Singh, president of VHP, Gurugram, said they have demanded that Nuh district should become “free of cow slaughtering”. “The district should be dissolved and joined in Gurugram and Palwal. Also, we want the cases registered in Nuh to be transferred to Gurugram police for a fair and transparent investigation,” he said.

Committee members of the mahapanchayat also demanded a paramilitary force to be based in Nuh to ensure security for the Hindu families. To be sure, an announcement to this effect has already been made by the government.

The members of committee also demanded an inquiry into the deputy commissioner of Nuh and the superintendent of police being on leave. “This is not a coincidence, there is something more which is not visible but we want to go in depth and see if they were aware of this violence or attack by Muslim community,”said Bhardwaj.

At the mahapanchayat, Haryana Gau Rakshak Dal’s Acharya Azad Shashtri called it a “do-or-die situation” and asked the youth to pick up arms, in a particularly provocative speech. “We should immediately ensure 100 arms licences are given in Mewat.”

Shashtri also appeared to instigate people to break the law. “There are many against me too but it does not make any difference,” he said.

The mahapanchayat was previously scheduled to be held in Nuh but the venue was shifted 35 kilometres away after police denied permission in Nuh, where six people were killed and 88 were injured in communal violence.

Palwal administration deployed five duty magistrates for the mahapanchayat to keep a check on proceedings.