Siddhu, a young journalist who took the risk of talking to people who suffered at the hands of the Jihadis during the violence at Bhainsa, has now been targeted by the Telangana government.
Sridharan Siddhu a young Hyderabad based journalist had traveled to Bhainsa as part of a Telangana Journalist Union team after the violence and exposed how a mob of Muslims shouting anti-Hindu and anti-National slogans had vandalized public property and attacked Hindu homes. But the Telangana government had rejected the charges and had tried to cover-up the reason for the violence and treated it as a case of personal enmity.
Journalist Siddhu had recorded the testimony of Hindus who suffered in the violence where they had narrated how their homes and properties were targeted by Jihadi elements. He had posted the video of his Facebook account which went viral even on other social media sites. It was then that instead of looking into the charges, the police have filed 2 FIRs against Siddhu under section 153A for promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, etc., and for disturbing harmony.
On 13th Jan, it was reported that local Muslim youth were enraged after elders in the town had admonished them for rash driving and using foul language. They then came back with a large mob and attacked Hindus. . The Telangana government had imposed curfew in the town and had arrested a few people as a customary measure who were let off on bail in a few days.
Video report that rankled Telangana govt
Siddhu’s video report which is 27 minutes long has Hindu from Bhainsa speak about the atrocities perpetrated on them by the Muslim mob. The vandalism done on thier homes, properties burnt, women narrating the horrific situation, stone pelting and throwing of fire bombs on homes and temples, have all been narrated by the people there.
Sridharan Siddhu while posting his video report on Facebook has also narrated his experience. Below are excerpts from his post:
“Namaste my name is Siddu, a journalist in Hyderabad. We as part of the Telangana Journalist Union team, came to Bhainsa to know the truth after the CM’s comments. The situation here is more dangerous than we thought. On January 12, bullets and petrol bombs were thrown where a Muslim mob with cries of ‘Allah ho Akbar’, ‘Pakistan zindabad’, ‘We will keep your female Gods’, etc attacked Hindu houses with weapons.”
“Local Hindus narrate how hundreds of Muslims descended on their home and stole everything that came into their reach including our gold and silver ornaments. Their houses were poured with petrol and set on fire. They were given a warning that they will be killed if they do not vacate withing three months. In Korbha street of Bhainsa, all the residents belong to the Munnuru community who are farmers and earn their daily bread through farming. They had built many temples in that area out of their own money. Many Muslim families too resided in that area. But on that day, their houses were attacked not only my Muslim men but their women too threw stones at their temples. They are disheartened that they were not able to safeguard their temple and idols of gods.”
“At 9 PM on January 12th, some unruly boys with noisy bike silencers distrubed peace in the area. After complaints were made to the police about their behavior, an altercation ensued between Muslim boys and the police. The police arrested the boys who were creating the distubance in the area. It was this arrest which enraged their community. Within 2 hours, a large mob of Muslims made up of children, teens, adults, armed with weapons descended on the area and started attacking. Local Hindus who were terrified said that they had not seen a scarier situation in their lives.”
“At around 11 PM, petrol bombs were thrown and stones were pelted on Hindu houses. The mob barged inside the Temples and stole gold and silver ornaments, including those that were made for festivals. They even stole ornaments from Hindu homes and gold that was prepared for the marriage of one of the victim’s sister was also taken away. This was narrated by an old man who was crying after the losses he suffered in the attack”
“In 2008, exactly 13 years ago, Hindus were attacked in a similar way by Muslims. The government then had come to their aid and provided some financial help. But this time, the TRS government has denied the incident itself and hence no help is coming their way. Looking at the condition of Hindus here had made me cry.”
“Ironically the police themselves had first confirmed the involvement of Muslims in the attack. Hindus who were injured were taken to the hospital by the police themselves who had come to the area to control the situation. But now, the same police under political pressure have registered false cases against the same Hindus instead of bringing the real perpetrators to book. The police say that they have also filed cases against the Muslim leader Phaijull? Kh?n khan, who is the mastermind of the attack on Hindu. But if the law does not deliver justice to the victims, they lose the respect for the law.”
“Local Hindus say that Bhainsa is neither Pakistan or Pakistan Occupied Kashmir to suffer like this. The Hindus who voted for TRS are now thinking if such appeasement for a minority vote bank will bring the state under similar condition. CM KCR should now tell if these Hindu are so insignificant that their votes do not matter? Your antics of following Hindu rituals seem only to appease Hindus but you are unable to understand their plight. You have to come here and spend time with Hindus here to understand the situation. Remember that Hindus are also humans who deserve their Human rights.”
After the FIRs were filed Siddhu has posted another video where he has said that he is on the side of truth and no other agenda than bringing out the truth irrespective of religion. He has said that he was also one of those who voted for KCR and instead of catching the culprits of the violence, the police are after him with FIRs. In the video in which he seems visually disturbed, he also narrates how he has been hounded online and offline for bringing out the truth about the situation in Bhainsa.
VHP warns of Hindus losing patience
After the violence in Bhainsa, VHP had blamed the ruling party for the violence. In a press release after the violence, the VHP had claimed that the TRS & MIM parties were trying to create communal violence in Telangana. It had accused the TRS government of backing Islamic fanatics who had attacked Hindus in Bhainsa.
The VHP had further said that Hindu community will certainly teach a lesson to the TRS party who are backing the party of Razakar’s (MIM) hate-filled politics in opposition to the legislation passed by Parliament. The police is completely failing to prevent the MIM party’s anarchy and hene the Hindus need to be prepared to defend the society, said the VHP.
