Massive protests broke out in Mandi city of Himachal Pradesh on Friday, September 13, against the alleged illegal construction in the jail road area. The mosque authorities claimed that they themselves demolished the unauthorized portion of the mosque on Thursday.
The protests in Mandi came just two days after Shimla saw protesters gathered on a call by Hindu groups to clash with security personnel during a demonstration to call for the demolition of an illegal portion of a mosque in the Sanjauli area.
The mosque management committee has been served a notice by the Mandi municipal corporation to remove the encroachment within 30 days. According to the notice, the mosque stands on 232 square meters of land while the approval granted was just for 45 square meters.
Hindu groups demanded the demolition of an unauthorized portion of a mosque in the town and tried to force their way toward the structure, forcing police to use water cannons to control the situation.
In one of the videos that has surfaced on social media, the protesters are seen raising communally charged slogans such as “Jai Shivaji, Veer Shivaji, Maar Bhagae Mulla Kaazi”.
In another video, the Hindu residents are seen singing “Chamak uthi talwaar Hindu jago to”
Raising slogans of “Jai Shri Ram”, the protesters initially held a march in the Mandi market area and sat on a dharna at Seri Manch. Later, when they made attempts to proceed towards the mosque, police stopped them and used water cannons to bring the situation under control.
Protests by Hindu outfits against the disputed structure in the Sanjauli mosque kept Shimla on the boil since last week. But on Wednesday, the protest took a violent turn with people breaking barricades and pelting stones as police used water cannons and batons to disperse them — something unheard of in the cosmopolitan town.
About 10 people, including police and women, were injured in the Himachal Pradesh capital and police detained some protesters as well, including Hindu Jagran Manch secretary Kamal Gautam.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu appealed to the people of the state to maintain peace and brotherhood.
“I have appealed to everyone to maintain peace and make no provocative statements. No one is allowed to take the law into their hands. We respect everyone. The land of Himachal has respect for all religions,” Sukhu was quoted as saying by The Hindu.
He said the people of the Muslim community have themselves come forward and offered to demolish unauthorised structures.
“They even demolished a portion of the mosque in Mandi on Thursday (September 13, 2024),” Sukhu said.
The Chief Minister said that the all-party meeting agreed that peace and brotherhood should prevail in the state and that all unauthorised construction should be dealt with strictly as per the law.
“No one has the right to hurt the sentiments of any community,” he added.
Heavy security arrangements were in place in Mandi city following violent clashes in the capital city Shimla
“Law and order will be maintained. Through different sources, we have information that some organisations have given a call to gather here. Around 300 police personnel have been placed at the entrance of Mandi town. Action will be taken on violation of prohibitory orders under 163 BNS,” SP Sakshi Verma told the Times of India.
