Sambhal tense day after clashes; SP MP, MLA's son booked, 25 arrested

Sambhal (UP): Police have booked Samajwadi Party MP Zia-ur-Rehman Barq and local SP MLA Iqbal Mehmood's son Sohail Iqbal and arrested 25 people following clashes between locals opposing a court-ordered survey of a Mughal-era mosque here and security personnel that claimed four lives.

Opposition parties attacked the ruling BJP at the Centre and Uttar Pradesh a day after Sunday's violence, with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav accusing the state government of orchestrating a "riot" and senior Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra alleging that the ruling party was creating a rift between Hindus and Muslims.

The BJP hit back, dubbing the violence as "pre-planned" and saying that it was instigated by those who have been taken aback by the party's rise in the country, especially after its performance in the Uttar Pradesh assembly bypolls.

In Sambhal, Monday was tense but it went off peacefully. The streets around the Shahi Jama Masjid were deserted, there was heavy police presence in the entire area and patrolling was on. Officials said traffic movement was normal and some shops had opened.

Several houses in the area where the clashes occurred were locked and no one was ready to talk to the media.

Tension had been brewing in Sambhal since November 19 when the Jama Masjid was first surveyed on the court's orders following a petition claiming that a Harihar temple once stood at the site.

On Sunday, trouble started early when a large group of people gathered near the mosque and started shouting slogans as the survey team began its work. The protesters clashed with security personnel, torched vehicles and pelted stones.

In the ensuing violence, three people were killed and scores, including security personnel and administration officials, were injured.

All three, aged about 25, have been buried and one more injured person died on Monday.

The district administration imposed prohibitory orders and barred the entry of outsiders till November 30. Internet services are suspended in Sambhal tehsil and Monday was declared a holiday for schools. A magisterial probe has been ordered.

Asked about the autopsy reports of the deceased, Divisional Commissioner Aunjaneya Kumar Singh said prima facie, it appears that gunshots from countrymade weapons were the cause of death. He did not go into details.

At a press conference on Monday, Superintendent of Police Krishan Kumar said seven FIRs have been lodged over the violence. Six people, including Barq and Iqbal, were named and 2,750 others have been mentioned as unidentified.

"Due to Barq's statement earlier, the situation worsened. He was given a notice earlier for this," he added. The official said that Barq's "Jama Masjid ki hifazat" (protection of Jama Masjid) remark mobilised the mob.

On the MP being in Bengaluru and not in Sambhal on the day the violence erupted, Kumar said Barq's name was included in the FIR based on his previous statements.

He also said that those who tried to damage the mosque by hurling stones would also be identified and rumour mongers would be taken care of.

The officer said 25 people have been arrested so far in the case.

Asked about the role outsiders played in the violence, District Magistrate Rajender Pensiya said that according to the probe, people gathered here from places 10-15 kilometres away.

In Delhi, Opposition members of Parliament slammed the government on the first day of the Winter Session and attacked the BJP over the violence, saying it was planned to polarise people on communal lines.

In a post in Hindi on X, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said, "The biased and hasty attitude of the state government on the recent dispute in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, is extremely unfortunate."

The administration, without listening to all the parties, insensitively took action that vitiated the atmosphere further and led to the deaths of people -- for which the BJP government is directly responsible, he charged.

"The BJP's use of power to create a rift and discrimination between Hindu-Muslim communities is neither in the interest of the state nor the country. I request the Supreme Court to intervene...," Gandhi said.

Yadav demanded that police as well as those from the administration responsible for the deaths be suspended and murder cases be filed against them.

He alleged that the Yogi Adityanath government indulged in malpractice in the bypolls, looted votes and engineered trouble in Sambhal to hide it.

"Some people say that after watching 'The Sabarmati Report' movie, some BJP leaders thought that they also want to become a big leader and have gotten this done (in Sambhal)," he said, referring to the movie based on the Godhra incident.

"The incident that has happened is unfortunate. When our MP Zia-ur-Rehman was not even in Sambhal why has an FIR been filed against him," Yadav told reporters.

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav also squarely blamed the BJP for the communal tension, claiming that the incident was aimed at "polarisation, along communal lines, across the country".

BJP MP Sakshi Maharaj, however, dubbed the violence as "pre-planned".

The Vishva Hindu Parishad also alleged that the violence was carried out "at the behest of maulanas" and accused Congress and Samajwadi Party leaders of making "provocative statements".

"The way Muslim fundamentalists pelted stones at police, fired bullets and committed arson in Sambhal is highly condemnable. The way Muslim leaders, maulanas and many leaders of the SP and the Congress, including Rahul Gandhi, have supported this violence is also worrisome," VHP joint general secretary Surendra Jain said.

Supreme Court lawyer Vishnu Shankar Jain, who filed the petition claiming that a Harihar temple once stood at the site, had earlier said the Court of Civil Judge (Senior Division) ordered the constitution of an "advocate commission" to survey the mosque.

On Sunday, he urged the Archaeological Survey of India to take control of the "temple".

Gopal Sharma, a local lawyer for the Hindu side, had earlier claimed the temple that once stood at the site was demolished by Mughal emperor Babur in 1529.