New Delhi: BJP leaders on August 5 demanded the strictest action against those found guilty for the Sambhal violence after a judicial commission’s report, tabled in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly, termed the 2024 incident a “pre-planned conspiracy”.
The commission has named and raised questions regarding the roles of several local leaders, including Samajwadi Party MP from Sambhal, Zia ur Rahman Barq, and Suhail Iqbal, son of SP MLA Iqbal Mahmood, along with members of the Jama Masjid management committee, including its President Zafar Ali and Secretary Mashhood Ali Farooqui.
Reacting to the report, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Manan Kumar Mishra said the government must act firmly based on the findings of the investigation. “The government must take the strictest possible action based on the findings of the investigation, and I am confident that it will do so,” Mishra told ANI.
“Their involvement points to an act of outright treason aimed at spreading anarchy, dividing society, and creating an atmosphere of unrest. This is a grave instance of crime and terrorism, and therefore, such individuals deserve the severest punishment,” he added.
BJP MP Dinesh Sharma also alleged that the 2024 Sambhal violence was part of a larger conspiracy. “It was undoubtedly a massive conspiracy. When the police investigated the matter, reports and statements surfaced widely, and numerous individuals intent on inciting large-scale riots were apprehended. Thus, the full extent of involvement will only become clear after the investigation concludes,” Sharma said.
The Judicial Commission’s report on the November 2024 violence in Sambhal was tabled in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly on Wednesday. According to the report, the violence was a “pre-planned conspiracy” and not a spontaneous flare-up. The report stated that bullets which caused the deaths were not fired by the police. It added that rioters attempted to loot police weapons during the chaos.
The judicial inquiry commission was constituted to investigate the violence that erupted on November 24, 2024, outside the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal during a court-ordered survey of the ASI-protected monument. The violence resulted in four deaths and left dozens of police personnel injured. The survey was ordered following a petition filed by senior advocate Vishnu Shanker Jain, which sought to determine whether the mosque was originally a temple.
Under a ‘Special Mention’ in the state Assembly, Sharma also raised the issue of roads and landmarks named after “aggressors and invaders”
“Roads named after figures like Jahangir or Shahjahan leave one feeling deeply aggrieved. Seeing the names of these aggressors evokes a sense of hostility and brings back painful memories of the era of subjugation,” he said.
He demanded the constitution of a commission to review such names. “I demand the constitution of a commission to rename symbols and monuments associated with these aggressors and to conduct a thorough review of obsolete laws. We should name monuments after the valiant heroes who made supreme contributions to our nation, rather than after aggressors and invaders,” Sharma added.
(With inputs from ANI)
