On October 22, Hindutva leader Gautam Khattar delivered an inflammatory speech against the Muslim and Christian communities in Chattarpur, Madhya Pradesh.
Abusing the message of the Quran and the ritual of Azaan, he attacked the core concept of Tawheed, which signifies faith in the oneness of Allah. Gautam said, “You are asked to stop your Katha during Azaan and Namaz, but the chant of La ilaha illallah Muhammadur Rasulullah Wa Ashhadu Alla Illaha illallah Wa Ashhadu Anna Muhammadan Abduhu Wa Rasuluh is not a prayer. They (Muslims) say there is no one except Allah worthy of worship and no messenger except Muhammad.”
He accused the Muslims of stone-pelting during Ram Yatra and incited the Hindu mob to commit communal violence. “Which is why they do stone-pelting on our Yatra. Islam is an enemy of humanity”, he said.
While the doctrine of Tawheed does not instruct Muslims to hate anyone, it is a matter of faith in the oneness of Allah and love for His Messenger. It is also a part of the religious freedom rights of Indian Muslims.
Quoting another ayah from Surah At-Tawbah of the Quran, Gautam stated that Islam teaches to fight against humanity. In contrast, for Muslims, Prophet Muhammad is the utmost humane soul, and both his life and teachings are considered epitomes of faith and compassion.
Khattar also quoted a verse from the bible, mocking the Indian Christian community.
“Sanatanis don’t need to go anywhere! You should seek refuge in Bala, Rama, or Krishna. You believe that Jesus Christ is a saviour, but he is not a rescuer,” he said, stirring animosity against Christians and blaming Christ for spreading messages of hostility.
It is also notable that Christians are considered ‘Ahle-Kitaab’ by Muslims, and insulting Isa Messiah (Jesus for Christians) is a double attack on two religious faiths.
The incident took place in Bageshwar Dham Katha.
A Serial Hate Offender
Gautam Khattar is a serial hate offender. He has been accused of addressing Muslims as “vidharmi” and promoting Jihad propaganda to harm them.
In his previous hate speech, Kumar connected the Bangladesh crisis in the Indian context without any logic and used the issue of Kashmiri Pandits to inflame communal tension.
“Maa ko kata, Behen ko loota!”, (They assassinated our mothers and looted our sisters) he said, weaving baseless narratives in inflammatory language and urging the Hindu community to equip themselves with weapons and attack Muslims.
Gautam said that he wished to see at least 100 Kashmiri Pandits take up weapons, attack Muslims, and become ‘Parshuram’ for a few days to turn Kashmir into a Sanatani territory.
