Muslim hawker allegedly beaten over 'Jai Shri Ram' chants; Internet suspended after tension
Asansol (WB), Jul 25: Tension prevailed in Hirapur area near here after a Muslim hawker was allegedly beaten up and forced to chant 'Jai Shri Ram' slogans, following which authorities have suspended internet services and stepped up security.
After the Tuesday night incident, "fake" videos and photographs of Hindu-Muslim riots were being circulated on the social media to vitiate the atmosphere, police said on Thursday, adding they have increased vigil to avoid any untoward incident.
According to officials, a Muslim hawker in his mid forties was beaten up on Tuesday evening by a group of youths who allegedly forced him to chant "Jai Shri Ram". He was later admitted to a local hospital.
No arrest has been reported in connection with the incident.
"We decided to snap internet services so that no one is able to vitiate the atmosphere through use of fake videos and photographs. Police patrolling is also on. The situation is presently under control," Asansol police commissioner D P Singh told PTI.
The internet services will remain suspended for the time being, he said.
The ruling TMC and the BJP blamed each other for the incident.
Senior TMC leader and Asansol mayor Jitendra Tiwari accused the BJP of trying to destroy the secular fabric of the area since the victory of the saffron party in the Lok Sabha polls.
"Since the result of Lok Sabha polls, this has been a regular affair. The BJP thinks it can win seats in the area in the 2021 assembly polls by creating a communal divide," Tiwari told PTI.
Babul Supriyo, the Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate, had been re-elected from Asansol this time.
State BJP general secretary Sayantan Basu denied the charges as "baseless" and said such incidents only prove that the state government has failed to maintain law and order.
The issue of mob violence and lynching was raised by a group of 49 eminent personalities, including filmmakers, authors and actors, who wrote to the prime minister on Tuesday, expressing concern over such incidents.
The signatories also said that they regretted that 'Jai Shri Ram' has been reduced to a "provocative war cry that leads to law and order problems, and lynchings take place in its name".
Reacting to it, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi had said no one should communalise criminal incidents and asserted that Dalits and minorities are safe in the country.
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Chikkaballapur: Three women sentenced to seven years for trafficking teen into prostitution
Chikkaballapur: The Additional District and Sessions Court in Chikkaballapur on February 9th convicted three women and sentenced them to seven years of rigorous imprisonment in a human trafficking and prostitution case registered by the Chikkaballapur Women Police Station in March 2022, The Hindu reported.
According to the police, the prime accused lured the victim, who was around 19 years old, on the pretext of offering her a job at a beauty parlour in Bengaluru. The teenager, who had been a victim of child marriage, was reportedly facing financial difficulties.
Police said she was taken from Chikkaballapur to Bengaluru, and from there to Delhi, and later confined to a room, where she was allegedly forced into prostitution.
The investigation revealed that the accused had sold the victim for Rs 3 lakh and kept her confined in a brothel, where she was subjected to sexual exploitation. Other women were also allegedly brought to the same premises for prostitution.
After nearly two months, the victim managed to escape and return to her hometown. She later filed a complaint at the Women Police Station in June 2022.
Following the trial, the I Additional District and Sessions Judge, Chikkaballapur, convicted the accused. Venkataramanamma was sentenced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 7,000, her associates Lakshmi Narasamma, to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 10,000, and Sharada, to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 15,000.
The investigation was conducted under the supervision of Superintendent of Police Kushal Chowksi, IPS. The prosecution was led by Special Public Prosecutor Zahida Banu D.K.
