Hindu Jagaran Manch, Uttaranchal, has strongly protested against the attack on Janmashtami celebration and damage of the idol of Sri Krishna in Akbarpur Dhadheki village of Mangalour, the Muslim-dominated area of Haridwar district. According to reports, a group of Muslim youth barged into a temple and damaged the idol of Sri Krishna when the Janmashtami celebration was going on in the village. The youth attacked the devotees in the temple and beat them up mercilessly. A tableau decorated in the temple during the celebration was also damaged. Devotional songs were being recited in the temple. According to villagers, a crowd of Muslim youth entered the temple forcibly. They were carrying heavy sticks in their hands and started beating the devotees in the temple. They objected to the use of loudspeaker fixed atop the temple saying it disrupts their namaz. The devotees first did not pay attention to it, as they did not want any disturbance in the celebration. But the Muslims, while terrorising the devotees with weapons, broke the idol of Lord Kartikeya into several fragments and also threw away the pictures of other gods and goddesses installed in the tableau. After doing all this, they further warned Hindus to be ready to face dire consequences if they continued the religious ceremony. After the incident, when local Hindus went to the local police station, the police refused to register their case. It was only after the strong protest from activists of Hindu Jagaran Manch and BJP the police registered a case against Bhura, Jishan, Mustakeen, Vaseem, Shafiq, Sahazad and others. (Ravindra Saini)
