On April 10, 2022, during the year’s Ram Navami celebrations, Khargone in Madhya Pradesh came under vicious attack by Islamists, who pelted stones and indulged in arson and violence. The cops had resorted to firing tear gas shells to bring the situation under control. During the events of violence, a total of 24 people were injured, including six police personnel. Even the Superintendent of Police (Khargone) Siddharth Chaudhary has sustained bullet injuries.
The state administration sprung into action after the brutal attack on the Hindus taking part in the Ram Navami Shobha Yatra. While the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced financial assistance to the people who lost their homes in the Khargone riots, the police started rounding up the Islamists who had unleashed mayhem on the streets during this year’s Ram Navami celebrations. The illegally constructed buildings were bulldozed by the administration, who also took l other measures to prevent further escalations.
In one such preventive measure, the Khargone administration erected barricades and constructed walls in some sensitive areas where Islamists had run riots on April 10th, 2022. The government’s decision was taken purely from a security perspective, primarily to maintain peace in the riot-hit area and to avert further friction between the communities.
The leftist media, however, was quick to use this measure taken by the authorities to spin a narrative to disparage the BJP government in the state. With their dramatic articles with exaggerated headlines, the far-left media houses deftly twisted the state administration’s decision to make it appear completely anti-Muslim.
Propaganda media gives a different twist
Soon after the administration implemented the decision to erect barricades in a few lanes and bylanes to prevent riots, an effort was made to paint the situation in a different light. The Indian Express compared the situation to the 1947 partition of India and Pakistan. Hindi daily Dainik Bhaskar used another dramatic headline to call out the Madhya Pradesh administration. It read, “Wall of Hate for Peace.” The Times of India gave its article an emotional spin by using a picture of a young boy watching the road from behind a barricade installed in a lane.
“The Wall Dividing Post-Violence Khargone – Delaying Normalcy or Ensuring Peace?” the leftist propaganda news website The Quint headlined its article.
Islamist media outlet “Two Circle,” continued to support the fundamentalists by referring to Muslims in Khargone as prisoners. Furthermore, it blatantly referred to the April 10 riots as “anti-Muslim,” despite the fact that the area’s Hindu population had been attacked by fanatical Islamists.
Another Islamist media outfit Maktoob media also published an article with the headline, “Khargone violence: Admin build walls dividing religious settlements”. They too went on to audaciously lie by calling the violence that broke out in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone ‘anti-Muslim’.
‘We feel safe because of the wall’: a Hindu resident of Khargone speaks to OpIndia
Ashish Pandit, a local of Khargone’s Bhatwadi, a neighbourhood plagued by violence on this year’s Ram Navami, spoke with OpIndia. “I buy and sell used two-wheelers,” he said, further recalling how stones and gas bombs were thrown at his residence on the day of the violence. “My uncle Kailash Pandit’s shop was burned down and plundered. It was a good decision to erect a barricade in the middle of the lane. The same approach, which had been guarded, has been used by the perpetrators not only once, but several times. They enter through small alleyways and then use the same lanes to flee.
There has been violence along those roads in the past
“Violent attacks on our side have escalated over the past few years,” Ashish stated. “Both in 2018 and in 2014, there were violent incidents around Dussehra. The streets that are now blocked off with barricades were utilised during that period. Also, stone-pelting incidents have occurred 2-4 times in the past. The area we (Hindus) live in is right in the middle, encircled on all sides by Muslim-dominated neighbourhoods,” said Ashish.
Erecting barricades does not mean blocking the road: Ashish Pandit, a local of Khargone
Ashish further told OpIndia that “those who are protesting and making a big deal about the government’s decision to erect barricades ought to be aware that just some of the lanes have these barriers in place. For instance, in my neighbourhood, barricades have been placed in only two lanes; nevertheless, other routes are still open and are frequented by individuals from different neighbourhoods.”
How can we buy things from people who stoned out houses, questions Ashish
“The owner of a flour mill who has been cited by numerous media outlets may be the one who owns a store close to the mosque at Talab Chowk, where the riot first started on April 10 and later spread to other areas of the city. Even though his business is still open, many Hindus no longer go there to get their flour milled. How can someone continue doing business with someone who threw stones at their home? No one has instigated anyone, instead, the Hindus who were affected by the violence made this decision on their own,” Ashish told OpIndia.
Islamists entered from the lane which has now been barricaded to plunder and burn down my shop: Khargone Hindu victim
Recalling the horror meted out to the Hindus on April 10, 2022, another Hindu named Kailash, who runs a grocery store called Kaushik grocery in the Bhatwadi mohalla of Khargone, told OpIndia, “The narrow lane which the authorities have now barricaded was the one the rampaging mob of around 150 Islamists had used on the day of the violence to approach my shop. They robbed my shop and set fire to whatever was left,” he said.
Kailash added that “people continued to look on in terror as the Islamists ran riots. Police had to use tear gas to drive them away. We incurred a loss of roughly Rs 7 lakh due to the vandalism and arson carried out by the radicals. I received a Rs 2 lakh compensation from the government. The installation of a gate here is a good decision from our security perspective. In the past also, armed Islamist mobs have used this narrow lane to enter our area and run riots. Now that this barricade is in place, it will stop the mobs from entering our area at their whim and causing mayhem”, said the Hindu victim.
These are mere excuses, many other approach roads are still open
The riots victim Kailash continued, “This is merely a pretext. Several other routes are still open and can be used by individuals to enter the area. The government is keeping an eye on all these entry and exit points, though.
The police officers were stationed in these areas day and night when the violence had occurred, but they cannot be stationed here permanently, he said, recalling how the enraged Islamist mob had later set fire to the homes of three Hindus in his neighbourhood. Now that these barricades have been erected in the narrow lanes that had become the rioters’ preferred route, at least the mobs won’t be able to arrive unexpectedly, and the commotion will now be brought under control, said Kailash, appearing visibly at ease.
We could open our shops only after administration erected these barricades, said a Khargone Hindu resident
The unruly mob set fire to Rajesh alias Raju Pal’s tailoring shop. When speaking to OpIndia, store owner Raju stated, “I had me shop by the name of Mary Ann Tailors, in which merchandise worth roughly 25 lakh rupees was burned to ashes. I received a 2 lakh rupee compensation from the government. From a security perspective, gates have now been installed, which was actually very important. Now, young children may cross it, but a sudden influx of people will be impossible,” said Raju who has been working to rebuild his business by operating from a different shop rather than his own destroyed one since the violence devastated his family.
“It is shameful that some people are advancing their nefarious agenda by using the installation of barricades by the state administration as a tool. This is important for our safety,” lamented the Hindu victim.
Was threatened again after opening the shop: Rajesh alias Raju Pal
Raju Pal continued, “About a dozen Muslims came to threaten me when I reopened my shop. After my shop was set on fire, I named a few accused, which infuriated them. They threatened me, saying even my newly reopened shop wouldn’t last long if I didn’t remove the names of Muslims from the case. Additionally, I reported this incident to the police. The same road where the barricade has now been erected is where those who set my shop on fire had come from. For those residing on that side, there are other alternative routes which can be used.
The routes used during the violence were already marked
Khargone’s district general secretary for the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Vivek Singh, asserted that “some specific roads were already marked, from which the Islamist mob came and ran riots on April 10.” Only a few of these roads have been barricaded, but they haven’t been completely blocked off as some media outlets have claimed. Even before this incident, violent rioters were moving between these lanes. Singh added that when the victims of violence were questioned if they were okay with the barricades being placed and whether they thought it was important for their security, they replied that the barricades had been erected in response to demands made by the Hindu victims in the neighbourhood.
BJP leaders opined how barricades are necessary
BJP leaders from Khargone Anoop Goswami and Jignesh Patel concurred that barricades must be erected to ensure the safety of the locals. They affirmed that nobody in the area is against the idea of barriers being built in a few key locations, despite the media’s exaggerated and unjustified portrayal of the community’s opposition to the idea.
The barricades were installed by the municipal administration: Khargone Police
The roadblock and other obstructions were decided upon by the municipal administration rather than the police administration, according to the TI of Khargone Kotwali. When OpIndia spoke to the SP of Khargone, he declined to comment on the matter. The DM office’s phone went unanswered. OpIndia would update the report once the police releases its official statement on the matter.