By MuslimMirror
On June 14, four Muslim men were allegedly accused of throwing a cow head in a temple in Jawra. The police arrested Sharik and Salman in the morning and demolished their houses on the same day. Naushad and Shahrukh were arrested in the evening, and their houses were demolished on June 16.
A fact-finding team from the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) visited Jawra, meeting individuals and families of the accused and inspecting photos of the incident. The team found that Shahrukh and Salman are laborers who also make “taaziya” at night. On the night of the incident, they had gone for tea and returned home shortly after.
Zaid Pathan of APCR revealed discrepancies in the police’s claims. The police stated they had video evidence of the accused throwing the cow head into the temple. However, it was discovered that the temple’s cameras were switched off during the alleged incident. The men were only seen walking on a nearby road in CCTV footage from a roadside camera. All four men were subsequently sent to Bherugarh jail. During the arrests, the women in their families were attacked, mistreated, and injured.
The APCR Madhya Pradesh chapter intervened to stop the demolition of the houses belonging to Shahrukh and Naushad’s families. Despite their efforts, local authorities faced threats of a “Bandh call” on Eid if the demolitions did not proceed. The APCR team worked through the night to file a petition for a stay order in the Special Court. Despite their diligent efforts, the houses were demolished before the court’s decision.
Demolition notices were issued on June 16 at around 12:30 PM, dated June 14, and the demolitions commenced shortly thereafter. The court granted the stay order at around 2:30 PM, but the houses had already been demolished between 12:30 PM and 1:30 PM. Shahrukh’s brother had informed the police and requested them to wait for the stay order, but his pleas were ignored.
This story was originally published in muslimmirror.com. Read the full story here.
