New Delhi: The Hanuman Jayanti Shobha Yatra was proceeding peacefully in the Jahangirpuri area on Saturday (April 16) evening. When the procession reached near Jama Masjid in C-Block, one Mohammed Ansar, with his four-five colleagues, descended in the procession and started scuffle. In no time, there was massive stone-pelting from the mosque and surrounding areas. The Delhi Police has said this in its FIR.
One Delhi Police official, Medha Lal Meena, who was posted in the area, was shot by Mohammed Aslam.
When the initial attack started from the mosque, the Delhi Police personnel tried to take control of the situation and dispersed the crowd. But in no time, the attack was so aggressive from the Jama Masjid mosque, the police officials present on the spot alerted their seniors and demanded reinforcements.
The FIR says that stones, rods, bottles, knives, swords etc were used.
Medha Lal Meena, who got shot in the arm, said that eight-ten rounds were fired from the crowd and one bullet hit his arm. “There were eight-ten rounds of firing from the side of the mob one of which hit my hand.Police did not fire at all. Many policemen were injured by sword too. Some were hit on the back and some on their head. Constable Suman was hit on his hand and back. All are under treatment now,” he said.
Police official Meena revealed that the attackers were speaking in Bengali-Bangladeshi language which he could not understand.
The FIR has been registered under Sections 147 (Rioting), 148 (Armed rioting), 186 (Obstructing duty of public servant), 353 (Assault on public servant), 307 (Attempt to murder), 427 (damage to property), and 436 (Attack by explosives) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) along with section 27 of the Arms Act, 1959.
The Delhi Police has arrested Zahid (22), Ansar (35), Shahjad (33), Muktyar Ali (28), Mohammed Ali (22), Amir 22), Akshar (26), Noor Alam (28), Mohammed Aslam (22), Zakir (22), Akram (22), Imtiyaz (29), Mohammed Ali (27) and Mohammed Athir (35).
Delhi Police Special Cell and Crime Branch have constituted ten teams to investigate the attack on the Shobha Yatra.
The initial investigation has revealed that the procession was processing peacefully but Mohammed Ansar interrupted it with the intention to create trouble in the area. The Police also suspect that the attack was pre-planned as it was very sudden from the Jama Masjid and it also involved women and children.
In a statement on Sunday (April 17), the VHP said that what happened in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri was not a riot but a pre-planned terrorist attack on Hindus. It also demanded invoking of National Security Act (NSA) against the rioters.
VHP Joint General Secretary Dr. Surendra Jain said, “What happened in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri on Saturday (April 16) was not a riot but a pre-planned terror attack on the Hindu society. The terrorists must keep in mind the consequences if the Hindu society start retaliating the attacks.”
