In a disturbing incident that unfolded on Friday, a local imam, identified as Imam Mustakeem (31), was reportedly assaulted in Aligarh’s Bulakghari village for allegedly refusing to chant “Jai Shri Ram.”
The imam was returning home by bicycle when he was attacked, allegedly by a mob consisting of 10-12 men armed with “lathi and iron rods.”
“The imam was returning from offering the afternoon (Dohar) prayers at Aisha Masjid in Lakhanpur village, Aligarh district, when a group of 10 to 12 individuals surrounded him on the road. They allegedly demanded that he chant “Jai Shri Ram,” and when he refused, they began to beat him with sticks on the roadside,” Imam’s friend Mohd. Mubeen told FoEJ Media.
The injured imam was left battered on the roadside and was later taken to the hospital by his friends and family, who were informed of the incident by a local resident of the village. “If that man hadn’t called to inform us that the imam was being beaten, the imam might have been killed,” Mubeen added.
The incident allegedly took place after a month of continuous verbal harassment of the imam, allegedly due to his identity. “For the past month, the group had been troubling him—repeatedly asking him to chant slogans. The imam would refuse and quietly walk away. He didn’t tell anyone, fearing the matter might escalate,” Mubeen said.
Soon after the incident, videos of the injured and visibly strained imam began making rounds online, where he shows his injuries and alleges that he was beaten with rods and sticks. He further claims that the attackers hurled the religious slur “Katua” at him during the assault.
However, Aligarh’s City Superintendent of Police, Mrigank Shekhar Pathak dismissed any communal angle to the incident during a press briefing. “Upon investigation, the matter appears to be a case of simple assault; no element of any religious angle or forcing to chant religious slogans has emerged in this case. This claim is completely false, and the Aligarh Police refutes it. Legal proceedings are being followed in this matter, statements from both parties have been received, and there is peace at the scene. Pathak stated.
Meanwhile, the official handle of the Uttar Pradesh Congress took to X (formerly Twitter) to comment on the incident, “In Aligarh, a local mosque’s imam was held hostage by some power-backed goons, brutally beaten for over an hour, and to chant ‘Ram-Ram, The double-engine BJP government wants to plunge the entire state into the fire of hatred, The government’s hatred against a particular community has grown to such an extent that it has given free rein to antisocial elements with hateful ideologies.” the post reads.
