A violent clash occurred during a Durga idol immersion procession in Bahraich, leading to the death of one individual and injuries to many on October 13, earlier this month. The clash swept over the city after a 22 year old man identified as Ram Gopal Mishra was shot dead with a bullet piercing through his chest after he was seen replacing the green flag with the saffron one.
Soon after the death of Mishra the city Bahraich and its neighboring areas came on edge for days, witnessing various incidents of arson, vandalism and destruction. Disturbing visuals made rounds on the social media platform narrating the horrific ordeals of the eyewitnesses. The violent clash started when after Misra’s last rites in Maharajganj, a city near Bahraich, thousands of Hindus barged into Maharajganj and went on rampage, selectively targeting Muslim properties, looting, vandalizing and setting them ablaze.
Kaleem (32), a vegetable vendor, spoke to FoEJ Media about the horrific ordeal he encountered. He revealed that a furious mob barged into his house and set everything ablaze.
“First, they burned my brother’s vehicle, then they set my vehicle on fire. They threw all the clothes and small items of the house into the fire. And they took the expensive items with them,” Kaleem said, speaking to FoEJ Media.
Kaleem reported that while his vehicle was licking up the frame, consuming the rubber tires and melting the plastic components, the mob tried to cast his 6-year-old daughter into the flames.
“One of the members of the mob ordered to burn my daughter, to throw her in the fire,” Kaleem said with his burnt vehicle at the back of him and his daughter sitting next to him.
He further reported that on his wife’s request he helped other survivors in fleeing and hiding themselves. He claims that he could save around 150 people in a span of 10 minutes.
“My wife said, ‘Save everyone. Even if it costs your death, it doesn’t matter. Because of you, the whole village will be saved.'” kaleem said.
“I saved about 150 people in approximately 5 to 10 minutes,” he added.
Kaleem further revealed that after saving everyone, he hid in the house and managed to save his own life, but at the cost of losing his belongings.
“In the end, I survived, so I hid in my own house, but there was nothing left in my home—no money, no jewelry, nothing at all,” kaleem said.
Kaleem is not the only one, the violent clash took away the happiness of many houses. There were many lives that were affected and many happy stories turned into a new one, the sad one.
Another family that screamed and wept in the month of October during and after the clash was the family of Sufiya (26)
“Grab the ladies, strip off their clothes, and rape them.” These were the words of the furious mob that barged into Sufiya’s house on an awful day.In a heartbreaking turn of events, Sufiya lost almost everything she once owned. She sits on a cot, one of the only assets she is left with, outside her devastated house.
“Everything in our house was destroyed; my jewelry and my sister-in-law’s jewelry were all ruined.” Sufiya told FoEJ Media.
“Not a single item was left that I could give my daughter to wear. Not even a vest remained.” she added
Sufiya further claimed that the violence was so intense that it traumatized her daughter, causing her to cry her lungs out and eventually faint.
“My little daughter cried so much that she fainted from crying,” she added
The clash has financially impacted numerous families, with most losing their only source of income. Aasif Mujtaba, Founder of Miles2Smile, a Delhi based non profit that primarily works with the survivors of communal violence , mob lynching, and demolition told FoEJ Media about the financial destruction.
“We met a total of 32 families in Siswa maharajganj area, it is quite evident that muslims houses and shops were selectively targeted. The crowd vandalized and burnt sources of livelihood of these poor families. We are trying to rebuild the maximum of these livelihood sources,” Mujtaba said.
