Sambhal violence report: UP minister flags 'demographic shift', legal teams tread cautiously

Sambhal (UP), Aug 29 (PTI) The judicial commission report on the November 2024 Sambhal violence has drawn sharp reaction from a state minister, who flagged serious concern over the reported demographic shift in the western Uttar Pradesh district.

The three-member panel on Thursday met Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and submitted its report on the violence that erupted near the Shahi Jama Masjid on November 24 during an ASI-monitored survey of the mosque, claiming four lives and injuring several others.

Commenting on the report, Minister of State for Secondary Education, Gulab Devi, said, “The investigation shows that the Hindu population in Sambhal dropped from 45 per cent at the time of Independence to 15 per cent now.

“Where did this 30 per cent go? Did they migrate? Did they convert? Or were they killed? The high court or our government will take action based on the facts mentioned in the report.” The Sambhal dispute dates back to November 19 last year, when Hindu petitioners filed a suit in the district court claiming the Shahi Jama Masjid was built on a temple.

A court-ordered survey was conducted on the same day (November 19), followed by another on November 24. The second survey triggered significant unrest in the area, resulting in the death of four persons and injuries to 29 policemen.

Legal teams representing both Hindus and Muslims adopted a cautious approach, saying they are yet to study the “confidential” report.

Advocate Gopal Sharma, representing the Hindu petitioners, said while he has not studied the report yet, he trusts the commission's impartiality.

“We have to trust whatever is there in the commission's report. We are confident that they (panel members) have prepared the report after examining evidence from both sides,” Sharma said.

“Even the opposition parties demand probe monitored by judicial commissions, which shows their reputation for neutrality,” he added.

Shakil Ahmed Warsi, the advocate representing the Shahi Jama Masjid side, said he can comment on the report only after studying it.

Warsi, however, dismissed some sources claiming the report flagged demographic changes in Sambhal.

“There is nothing like that. Populations keep increasing and decreasing. They (Hindus) are still present in Sambhal,” Warsi said.

He also said the commission's role was to investigate the November 24 incident, not to determine the origins of religious order.

Zafar Ali, the president of the Shahi Jama Masjid who was accused of inciting the violence, said, “I was told the judicial commission has submitted its report to the chief minister. I have not seen the report and can comment on it only after its contents are made public,” he said.

Ali also questioned how the contents of a confidential report could be leaked to the public, and appealed to all the parties to avoid spreading rumours.

According to government sources, the judicial panel report claims that Hindus have been "consistently made the primary target in every riot since 1947" and they were again the focus of a plot during the flare-up in Sambhal.

The report credits Uttar Pradesh Police with preventing a "massacre" and says the rioters were brought in from outside.

It also links internal clashes to the longstanding Turk-Pathan tensions, and says the controversy over the Harihar temple, which was allegedly replaced by the mosque, was stoked by references to Babur's legacy, which worsened the atmosphere, the sources said.

The report highlights major demographic shifts in Sambhal, noting that the Hindu population fell from 45 per cent at the time of Independence to 15 per cent now, while Muslims presently make up 85 per cent of the population, the sources said.

It alleges that radical organisations and illegal arms and drug networks were activated to destabilise the region, while praising swift state action.

According to the sources, the panel traces Sambhal's history of communal strife to a 1953 Shia-Sunni clash, with major riots in 1956, 1959, 1962 (when Jan Sangh MLA Mahesh Gupta was stabbed), 1966, and 1976, when a mosque committee dispute and a maulvi's murder triggered temple attacks and curfew. PTI COR CDN ARI