A controversy has erupted in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh after a video showing Samajwadi Party (SP) district vice-president Haji Mohammad Usman, uncle of Bilari MLA Mohammad Faheem Irfan, offering prayers at the government-run Circuit House surfaced on social media, prompting objections from a Hindu organisation and eventually leading to the registration of an FIR.
The incident took place on Thursday, September 3, after a review meeting of SP leaders at the Circuit House. Lal Bihari Yadav, Leader of the Opposition in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council, was staying at the Circuit House under official protocol and had held a review meeting with local SP leaders.
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Pawan Khera reacts
Congress MP Pawan Khera reacted strongly to the reports of FIR against Usman and implied that he was being targeted for his Muslim identity. “He happens to be Haji Mohammad Usman - Samajwadi Party district vice-president, and the uncle of Bilari MLA Mohammad Faheem Irfan - a Muslim. What a disgrace!,” Khera wrote on X.
Namaz row after video shared on social media
According to officials, after the meeting ended, Usman stepped outside and offered prayers near the lawn. A video, reportedly recorded by an SP worker, shows him offering prayers beside a parked car.
{{/usCountry}}According to officials, after the meeting ended, Usman stepped outside and offered prayers near the lawn. A video, reportedly recorded by an SP worker, shows him offering prayers beside a parked car.
{{/usCountry}}The video surfaced on social media on Friday, triggering a debate over whether religious activity should be permitted on government premises. While some users described the incident as an individual's exercise of religious faith, others questioned the offering of prayers at a government property and the circumstances in which it took place.
A case has been registered against Samajwadi Party leader Haji Mohammad Usman for offering namaz on a road in Circuit House in Uttar Pradesh's Moradabad.
Usman, who is the district vice president and uncle of Bilari MLA Mohammad Faheem Irfan, is facing charges under sections 285 (Danger or obstruction in public way or line of navigation) and 292(Punishment for public nuisance) of the Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita.
A purported video of Usman offering namaz near a parked car has been shared widely on social media. Some reports claimed that he was offering namaz after a review meeting with UP assembly LoP Lal Bihari Yadav at Moradabad Circuit House on September 3.
Pawan Khera reacts
Congress MP Pawan Khera reacted strongly to the reports of FIR against Usman and implied that he was being targeted for his Muslim identity. “He happens to be Haji Mohammad Usman - Samajwadi Party district vice-president, and the uncle of Bilari MLA Mohammad Faheem Irfan - a Muslim. What a disgrace!,” Khera wrote on X.