In one of the incidents the assailants went inside a mosque and forced an imam to chant Jai Shri Ram. When the imam refused, the attackers cut his beard
By News Desk
An imam from Maharashtra’s Jalna district was allegedly assaulted and forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ by unidentified Hindutva goons while he was reading Quran. When he refused, they cut his beard.
The incident occurred on March 24 in Jalna’s Anwa village. According to local reports, the imam named Zakir Sayyed Khaja was reading the Quran in the mosque when at around 7:30 pm, a group of Hindutva goons with their faces covered entered the mosque premises and threatened him with dire consequences if he refused to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’.
When the imam did not adhere, three men took him outside and beat him up. the imam alleged he was attacked with a chemical-laced cloth which rendered him unconscious.
He was rescued by a few Muslims who had come for the Isha prayers. On regaining consciousness he noticed his beard had been cut off.
The imam is currently undergoing treatment at the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (previously known as Aurangabad).
On information, police registered a case against the unidentified individuals under Sections 452 (trespassing after preparation for hurt, assault), 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) and 34 (criminal act by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Investigations are currently underway.
This story was originally published in siasat.com. Read the full story here.