Pune Bakery burnt by mob mistaking Hindu owner for Muslim: Islamophobia claims innocent victim
Pune: A bakery owned by a Hindu man in Maharashtra’s Pune district was set ablaze by a violent mob after false rumours spread that the establishment belonged to a Muslim. The shocking incident occurred in Yavat village amidst rising communal tensions in the area. The owner, Swapnil Adinath Kadam, became a victim of Islamophobic violence despite belonging to the Hindu community.
The violence was reportedly sparked by two developments: the alleged defacement of a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and a provocative social media post. These incidents stoked communal unrest in Yavat, culminating in a protest rally that soon turned into a riot.
As the rally progressed, a section of the mob moved toward a local mosque. On the way, they encountered Kadam's bakery. Mistaking the presence of Muslim workers as evidence of Muslim ownership, someone from the crowd shouted that the bakery belonged to a Muslim. The unverified claim quickly escalated into a frenzied attack.
Speaking to the media, Swapnil Kadam recounted the terrifying moment his shop was targeted: "Someone in the crowd just shouted that the bakery is owned by a Muslim because I employ Muslim workers from Uttar Pradesh. They didn't stop to verify anything."
Kadam said the mob began pelting stones, ripped off the tin roof, and hurled some inflammable material inside, setting the bakery ablaze. Within minutes, the entire structure was engulfed in flames, reducing his livelihood to ashes.
Innocent victims
Kadam made it clear that neither he nor his employees had any link to the controversial social media post that allegedly triggered the violence. "My workers are here just for employment. They have nothing to do with any communal post or religious dispute," he emphasised.
The bakery, which Kadam had built from scratch to support his family, is now completely destroyed. The emotional and financial toll on him and his family is immense.
Local police have launched an investigation and the administration has appealed for calm. However, the atmosphere in Yavat remains tense.
A local resident, speaking on the condition of anonymity to The Observer Post, expressed his dismay: "The way people instantly blame Muslims without any evidence shows the extent of hatred we’re living with. Today it was a Hindu who suffered because of this environment."
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'Rear-guard action': BJP over Mamata accepting sports minister's resignation after Messi event
New Delhi (PTI): The BJP on Tuesday alleged that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's accepting Aroop Biswas' resignation as the state sports minister is nothing but a "rear-guard action" to douse public anger over the mismanagement of football icon Lionel Messi's event last week.
BJP co-in-charge for West Bengal Amit Malviya alleged that this is also an "open confession" that the Messi event fiasco was not accidental but a government-manufactured disaster, borne out of the poor governance of Banerjee, her ministers and the state bureaucracy.
Banerjee on Tuesday accepted Biswas' resignation as the sports minister in the wake of the controversy over the mismanagement of football icon Messi's event last week, a senior leader of the ruling TMC said.
Biswas, who had written to the chief minister seeking to be relieved of his responsibilities as sports minister, will continue as a cabinet minister, retaining charge of the power department.
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Reacting to the development, Malviya said in a post on X, "TMC Sports Minister Aroop Biswas resigns after the Messi fiasco and Mamata Banerjee accepts it in record time."
"Do not mistake this for accountability; this is nothing but a rear-guard action to douse public anger. anger! This is not 'Raj Dharma'," he added.
The BJP leader alleged that the incident was the outcome of "loot" of common people which is "so synonymous" with the TMC.
The incident was also the outcome of the "shameless VIP culture that TMC thrives on and deep-rooted cronyism promoted by Banerjee," he charged.
Malviya further alleged that Biswas' resignation exposes a "collective failure of Mamata Banerjee, her partisan bureaucracy, and her crony cabinet".
"This is a symbolic sacrifice, a political hoax, soon to be buried under layers of bureaucracy, with no justice, no accountability, and no remorse," the BJP leader said, adding, "No resignation will bring back the time lost, the money wasted, or the stolen chance for football lovers to witness Messi in Kolkata."
