The Rajkot Police have filed a case against a group of around 25 people including Farooq Musani for vandalizing 2 shops belonging to the Hindu traders. The accused persons broke into the shops at night by breaking the locks and vandalized the shops by throwing the merchandise onto the street.
As the shopkeepers learned about the incident, they protested. However, the accused claimed that the shops were Waqf properties and that they had orders claiming the same.
Following the incident, one of the victims, Virendrabhai Kotecha, filed a complaint at the Rajkot A-Division Police Station against Farooq Musani and several unidentified individuals. The complaint was lodged late on December 31st but the FIR was registered against 5 identified persons on 1st January. The sections imposed against the accused individuals are Sections 189(3), 190, 329(3), and 351(2).
5 booked for allegedly threatening man to vacate shop as Waqf board property#Rajkot #Gujarat #TV9Gujarati #TV9News pic.twitter.com/3Z0HS3EVAt
— Tv9 Gujarati (@tv9gujarati) January 1, 2025
A copy of the FIR has been exclusively obtained by OpIndia.
As per the FIR copy, the incident occurred on 31st December 2024. Farooq Musani and others broke into the shops in the Old Danapith area of Rajkot, citing a Waqf Board Order. They broke the locks of two shops and threw the belongings of the Hindu traders on the streets. The shops, notably, had been leased by the Hindu traders for decades and this incident has created significant resentment among the local business community. The complainant, who operated a mandap service business from one of the shops for 50 years, condemned the incident and demanded action in the case.
The complainant initially stated that the shops are looked after by the Nawab Masjid Trust but have been leased for decades. Later, it came to the notice that the land on which the shops were built belonged to the PWD department.
On the evening of December 31st, 2024, the complainant said that he was sitting at his nephew’s shop nearby when individuals, including Farooq Musani, arrived and forcibly broke the locks of two shops. They began throwing goods out from the shops, one of which belonged to the complainant.
As per the complaint, Virendrabhai, seeing this, rushed to his shop and confronted Farooq Musani, urging him to stop. Responding to this, Musani claimed that he was a trustee of Nawab Masjid and that he had orders to clear the shops from the Gujarat State Waqf Board. He allegedly threatened another shopkeeper, warning them to vacate their shop or risk having their goods thrown out. Musani also demanded that the shops be handed over to the mosque.
Farooq Musani further presented an order dated December 19th, 2024, from the Gujarat State Waqf Board in Gandhinagar. The order allegedly instructed the immediate transfer of possession of the shops to the mosque. Following the incident, the complainant contacted the police, prompting personnel from Rajkot A-Division Police Station to visit the scene. Later, the complainant filed a formal complaint at the police station against Farooq Musani and others involved.
OpIndia talked to Virendrabhai Kotecha and learnt that a group of approximately 20 to 25 people, including Farooq Musani, stormed his shop without prior notice. “They forcibly broke the locks and began throwing goods out onto the street. Farooq Musani and others entered the shops unlawfully and discarded the goods. Even now, my shop’s belongings are lying on the road,” he said.
Kotecha further explained, “After being shown the Waqf Board’s order, we consulted our lawyer in Ahmedabad. According to the Waqf Board’s regulations, possession of any property requires issuing three notices as prior intimation. However, we did not receive even a single notice. The order was dated December 19th, yet the locks were broken directly on December 31st, which violates the rules.”
Speaking on the matter, Rajkot City DCP Zone-2, Jagdish Bangarwa, stated, “A complaint has been filed against five individuals, including Farooq Musani. A letter has surfaced claiming that the shops were vacated following an order from the Waqf Board. Verification of this letter is underway. The Waqf Board’s own instructions state that possession must be taken following proper procedures, which include issuing notices and conducting eviction in the presence of police. Since these rules were not followed, action has been initiated.”
In an update to the case, it has been informed to the media that the police have given back the possessions of the attacked shops to the Hindu traders. Further, it has come to the fore that the properties that were being claimed as Waqf property were actually encroached upon and originally belonged to the PWD department. A detailed original Gujarati report on this case can be read here.