On 25th January 2022, a young man named Kishan Bharwad was killed allegedly over communal tensions. Kishan was on target for a long time before he was finally killed as he had shared a post on social media that was considered offensive by Islamists. However, the three culprits in the case have been arrested including a Maulana.
Maulana along with two others arrested for the murder of Kishan
The Police have arrested three accused who have been identified as Dhandhuka residents Sabbir Chopda (24) and Imtiyaz Pathan (27), and Maulana Mohammad Ayub Javarawala, a resident of Jamalpur in Ahmedabad. Reportedly, Chopda and Pathan shot Kishan, and Maulana had allegedly provided the pistol and cartridges to them for killing Kishan.
A senior police official at Ahmedabad Rural reported, “The deceased had posted a Facebook update on January 6, 2022, in which he had written objectionable comments against a religion. An FIR was lodged against Kishan then at the Dhandhuka police station after a complaint. After Kishan received bail, the duo (Chopda and Pathan) made up their mind to kill him and were provided with the gun and ammunition by the Maulana.”
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Sanghavi, the Minister of State for Home was quoted as saying “After Kishan was murdered, the Ahmedabad police formed separate teams and nabbed the accused within 24 hours. The state government is monitoring the case and is actively working to ensure justice to Kishan.”
Kishan was killed for expressing his thoughts
According to the police, Kishan was shot dead when he and his cousin Bhaumik Boliya were passing by the Modhwada locality of Dhandhuka town. At around 5:30 PM, two killers approached them on the bike and fired shots. Bhaumik survived while Kishan, the main target died on the spot.
People aware of the incident have asserted that he was killed because of his social media post. It is being said that Kishan had shared a post on social media that was considered offensive by Islamists.
The murder has led to the rise of communal tension in the state. To protest against Kishan’s murder, Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) organised a bandh in Dhandhuka. Talking about the bandh, Hitendrasinh Rajput, VHP spokesperson said, “The call of bandh in Dhandhuka was totally successful. Our senior Gujarat leaders Ashok Raval, Rajesh Patel, Jwalit Mehta and Nalin Patel visited Dhandhuka today and also met the family of deceased Bharwad,”
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Earlier as reported by TFI, according to the 2011 Census, Hindus consist of 88.57 percent of the total population of Gujarat, while Muslims share only 9.6 percent of the population pie chart. The problem of uneven population distribution has been exacerbated by Pakistan supportive religious fanatics in the state.
However, Gujarat Government needs to take some precautionary measures to prevent communal tensions. If such attacks and crimes would continue to occur, it will lead the state to witness a threat of disrupted communal harmony and no one deserves to die because of communal riots.