A video of a group of Hindus chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ as a Milad un Nabi procession was underway in Ziaguda, Hyderabad went viral on Sunday, October 1. People involved in the sloganeering have reportedly been detained by officials of the Kulsumpura police station. Several men in the video can be seen hindering traffic, sloganeering and whistling as the procession came to a halt.
Responding to the incident, Telangana MLA T Raja Singh on Monday, October 2 alleged that the ‘Hindu karyakarthas’ were picked up by police in the wee hours of the night after slogans of Jai Shri Ram were raised and dubbed the investigation ‘one sided’.
He also alleged that the Hindus in the crowd started sloganeering in response to slogans from a group of Muslims who were part of the procession. “I have told police officials that saying Jai Shri Ram is not a crime. If the investigation will be one sided, then I have told officials that we will respond in kind,” he said.
It is worth noting that Singh, an MLA suspended by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is notorious for his Islamophobic statements and hate speeches, and was even jailed in August 2022 following his controversial remarks on Prophet Muhammad. Aside from the sole jail term, Singh is also an accused in 101 cases chiefly for disturbing communal harmony.
In an unrelated incident, under Hussaini Alam police station limits, an FIR was registered against some people for allegedly barging into a civilian’s residence and kicking the door of a Ram temple situated inside.
A case has been registered under Sections 447 (criminal trespass), 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of Rs 50), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation) read with Section 34 (acts done by several persons in furtherance of a common intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).