By Syed Abubakr and Sumit Singh
“They misbehaved and assaulted my father. Despite his objections, they forcefully smeared him with Holi colors. He was hit with a bucket filled with color,” said Bushra, daughter of Mohammad Sharif, who died on March 15 after allegedly being assaulted by a group of people for resisting Holi colors in Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao district.
Sharif, 48, lived near Qasim Nagar Rabbanna Mosque in Sadar. He had returned from Saudi Arabia just two months ago, where he had been working as a water tanker driver for the past 12 years. He leaves behind his wife, Raushan Bano (45), five daughters—two of whom are married—and a son who is still a minor.
“At around 10 am on Saturday, he stepped out of the house while fasting for Ramadan. A group of children threw colors at him. He told them not to do it. Soon, elders from the children’s family came out and started arguing with my father. By then, he had sat in an auto-rickshaw, but they chased him and pulled him out,” Bushra told Maktoob. “They beat him so brutally that he struggled to breathe. He was beaten to death. They also took the money he was carrying.”
The family learned about the attack when a neighbor from their mohalla informed them about Sharif’s condition. “We were all asleep after Sehri. Only our mother was awake. The neighbor came and told her. We all woke up and sent our brother to bring our father back home,” Bushra added. Sharif was eventually rescued by bystanders who gave him water, but moments later, he collapsed and died. His devastated family, having lost its sole breadwinner, is now demanding justice—jail for all the accused, monetary compensation, and a job for Sharif’s younger son.
Maulana Nisar Ahmad, Qazi Shahar of Unnao, told Maktoob that the family was initially hesitant about allowing a postmortem but later agreed. They also wanted to file a police complaint, but seeing a large crowd of locals and police at their doorstep, they hesitated. However, Maulana Ahmad, in the presence of police officers, convinced them that an FIR was necessary for an investigation. The family then submitted a formal complaint.
This story was originally published in maktoobmedia.com Read the full story here.