[Reader-list] Dhulia (Dhule) Police Attack: Fact Finding by Suresh Khairnar

[SUNDARA BABU]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: <ram.puniyani at gmail.com>, indiapeacecentre at yahoo.co.in


 Dear Secular harmony friends,

Greetings from All India Secular Forum and Suresh Khairnar.
The following is a report on the Police attack on Muslims unleashed on May
06 2010.
The same is given in the attach too.

yours sincerely
suresh khairnar
0932 655914

*Fact Finding on*

May 6th 2010

*Police Firing *And *Reaction*

at

Dhulia, Maharashtra,

*Fact finding team (All India Secular Forum)*

Dr Suresh Khairnar( Nagpur),

Mayatai Choure (Kamptee),

Ranjit Pardeshi (Dhulia),

Adv. Karim Salar (Jalgaon),

Rahul Wagh (Dhulia),

Asif (Malegaon)



The Team visited Dhulia city on 12th May, 2010 for fact finding the incident
of police Firing and the following community reaction on 6th May and its
aftermath.



About Dhulia: Dhulia city, 300 Kms north-east of Mumbai, has about 5 lakh
population out of which 40% are Muslims, mostly engaged in power loom
industry, known as Ansaris.  The rest of the population is engaged in
agriculture and allied industries.  Sugarcane, Banana, groundnut, Cotton and
of late grapes are the major crops of the region.  Quite a few ginning as
well as sugar mills are located in the region.



Though Dhulia and Malegaon are twins for many reasons, unlike the latter
which is situated at a distance of a mere 50km, Dhulia is historically a
peaceful city from the communal point of view.  However, people started
feeling communal tension since the Ram Janmabhoomi movement launched by the
Sangh Parivar in the early 90s.  A number of smaller skirmishes were
reported in the years followed from Nandurbar, Sakri, Navapur, Pimpalner…
which are on the borders of Gujarat and Madya Pradesh.



Prior to the recent incident, the last big Hindu-Muslim riot in the city of
Dhulia took place in October 2008 over the controversial Afzal Khan-Shivaji
poster, in which about 10 people lost their lives.  A separate enquiry
report on this riot was released by AISF then.



*The Enquiry:*  The fact finding team visited the city of Dhulia to
investigate the recent incident that took place on 6th of May.

* *

*Incident:  *On the day of unrest, May 06, 2010, when the administration was
busy conducting MHT-CET exam, someone pasted a computer generated cartoon of
Prophet Mohammed on the district Collectorate notice board.  Creating images
of Prophet Mohammed is considered to be a blasphemy by Muslims.  One Bilal
Ahmed who happened to visit the Collectorate, on seeing the poster, rang up
to Mr. Sawaal Ansari, NCP Corporator and informed him of the mischief.  Sawaal
Ansari, in turn informed one Mr. Harshawardhan Kadam Bande, Ex MLA and NCP
leader.  A delegation led by these two leaders called upon the District
Collector who in the presence of the Superintendent of Police, assured the
delegation that that the culprit(s) would be arrested within one hour.
 However,
hours passed without the police arresting any.



Meanwhile, a crowd of Muslims numbering few thousands had gathered at Assi
Footi Road, Tiranga Chowk. The crowd demonstrated against the blasphemy and
demanded immediate arrest of the culprits.  It is reported that the crowd
had turned violent and pelted stones on ST Buses.  According to the media 14
buses were damaged which the Muslim representatives refuted saying only two
buses were damaged.  Police force was deployed on the scene. The SP Mr.
Himmatrao Deshbhratar appealed to the crowd to disperse peacefully, assuring
them that the culprits would be arrested soon.  He even requested Mufti
Mazood Ahmed (35 years old) to appeal the crowd.  Standing on top of the
Police Vehicle, Mufti appealed to the Crowd to disperse.



When the Fact Finding Team asked about the happening the Muslims told that,
heeding the appeal of the Police officer and the Mufti, the crowd dispersed
peacefully, and as it was time for Namaz they went to Namaz Subhani Masjid.
However, they further said, when the Namazies came out of the Masjid after
offering Namaz they found themselves surrounded by RAF Commandos and local
police who started firing indiscriminately on the crowd without warning, and
unleashed frightening attack on people and property.  As a result three
persons were grievously shot.  The names of the injured persons are:



   1. Shiraj Ahmad, age 35, works at Seva Automobile, hit on the back and
   paralyzed, being treated at a private hospital
   2. Adil Ahmad, age 17 years, 12th pass student returning from CET exam,
   hit on the hip from the back, being treated at a private hospital.
   3. Shoeb Ahmad Hussain, age 25 years, hit on the back, now in police
   custody.





Mufti Mazood Ahmed who was requested by the Police to appeal to the masses
to maintain peace, was also brutally attacked by the Commandos, his two
fingers are fractured and is now in bandage.



The eye witnesses told, immediately after this firing without warning, the
police launched an offensive in the Muslim *bustie*, forcefully entering
into houses, hurled abuses on the women of the houses, beating whoever was
found including women and children, breaking furniture and throwing about
utensils in the kitchen and arresting about 40 Muslims from their homes.



The fact finding team visited Taj Transport Garage which according to the
eyewitnesses was ransacked by 15-20 Commandos who beat up the owner Mohd
Alim and picked up 6 employees of the garage.[1] <#_ftn1> Similarly the
Commandos broke open another shop, Maharashtra Battery Works which was
closed then, and raged the shop to the ground. The batteries were also
smashed beyond repair.  Another Engineering worshop run by  Haji Mohammed
Shafi Ramzan Shah, was also raided and his servant Shafique was brutally
attacked and taken to custody.





S.P Mr. Himmatrao Deshbhratar, when contacted, stated that he was planning
to arrest 5000 Muslims.  When asked how can he maintain law and order with
the arrest of so many people, he replied that the Guardian Minister Mr.
Abdul Sattar had told him that these people (referring to Muslims)
understand only the language of sticks.



Habib Kha a senior citizen told that, his grand son Naseem Kha S/O Yusuf Kha
was beaten up by police when he went to Pan Shop at assi footi road, and
arrested.  There are over 25 younsters (all below the age of 25) still in
custody.  Yusuf Kha managed to get his son released in two days, however
Naseem Kha was taken to custody once again.



Incidentally the sitting independent MLA of Dhulia Mr Anil Gote had called
for Dhulia Bandh on the 5th May, a day before the incident, in protest
against the physical attack waged by the hands of his political rival Mr.
Harshwardhan Kadambande.  Mr. Anil was away from the constituency on the day
of the incident.  Mr. Kadambande states that ‘local political rivalry is the
root cause of the trouble in Dhulia.  (Anil Gote is the second accused in
the Telgi Stamp Paper Scam)



Muslims claimed that police seemed to come with the plan of damaging our
properties.  Over 20 cars and more than hundred houses were damaged.  Police
on the other hand says that the Muslims themselves damaged the property and
put the blame on the Police.



The arrested people have not been released till today.



The Hindus say that it is a clash between police and Muslims.  There is no
communal bad blood in it.



*Observation:*

   1. Over 25 Muslim youth (below the age of 25) are still in police custody
   charged with criminal allegations.
   2. The property, particularly vehicles were vandalized.  The Fact Finding
   Team could see over 15 vehiles some of them costly ones, still remain in
   damaged condition in Muslim Mohella.
   3. Three Muslims are grievously injured in Police Firing.
   4. The Superintendent Claims that ‘Muslims understand only the language
   of the Canes, and the attack on them had contained the unruly masses and
   averted a possible communal riot.’



*Comments:*

   1. The indiscriminate attack on Muslim Masses suggest that the police
   came with a pre-determined mind to ‘teach a lesson’ to Muslims.
   2. Communal Prejudice among the police is a very strong.
   3. Many Muslims abstained from responding to the query by the Team as
   they think it might bring them to Police’ vindictive attention, as they
   themselves opined.
   4. Even those responded, requested to keep their name undisclosed.
   5. Police has created a fear psychosis among the people for no obvious
   fault of them.



Report by:



Suresh Khairnar

Convener,

All India Secular Forum



------------------------------

[1] <#_ftnref1> The Six persons arrested are: Basheer Bhai, Basheer Pathan,
Mustaq, Wasim, Aslam and Riffique Sheikh.