New Delhi: A Muslim man was tied to an electrical pole and brutally beaten on suspicion of taking a banana which was meant to be an offering at a temple on Wednesday, September 27. He succumbed to his injuries.
Isar Mohammad was 26 years old and lived in the Sundar Nagri area in Delhi.
Police have so far arrested six people and a 17-year-old minor in connection with the incident: Kamal, Manoj, Yunus, Kishan, Lucky and Pappu.
The incident occurred during the Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations in the neighbourhood’s G4 Block, where a Ganapati idol had been installed. The stage was set up on a narrow alley. On the morning of September 27, Isar had allegedly picked up a banana that had been placed in front of the Ganapati idol.
Eight to 10 men caught him, tied him to an electric pole a mere 20 feet away from the stage, and subjected him to severe beatings for about two hours. Videos of the assaults were recorded and widely circulated on social media.
A resident of the G4 block said on condition of anonymity, “I was woken up by a sharp scream around 4.30 am. When I came out, I was horrified to see a group of people brutally beating someone. The cries echoed in the neighbourhood.”
Following the beating, Isar was left seriously injured and unable to move. Locals’ accounts vary as to how he reached home. Some said he dragged himself while others said that locals took him.
Isar’s house is situated merely 200 metres away from the location of the incident. There, he passed away at around 5 pm on Wednesday.
Isar’s father, Wajid, works as a fruit seller. He has four daughters. Isar’s mother had passed away a few years ago.
Isar’s father, Abdul Wajid, is standing at the pole where Isar was tied and beaten.
“I realised that they attacked my son for taking the prasad offered to Ganpati. They bound my son’s hands and feet tightly, and despite his pleas for water and mercy, they continued to beat him. We simply want justice. I have eaten prasad many times. Hindu brothers here have shared it with me. This loss has shattered our lives,” Wajid told The Wire.
Isar had been a familiar presence in the area, known for his peaceful demeanour.
Shyam, another local said that he was informed of the beating by his son and rushed there to find Isar was the victim. Isar was known to him. “While some people claimed he was beaten for theft, I strongly believe he was innocent. I had often seen him assisting others, and he was not known for stealing,” he said.
Some locals spoke of the fact that law and order has long been a concern in the neighbourhood. Anti-social behaviour, including sexual harassment of women, was common, they said, with police allegedly doing little.
DCP (Northeast) Joy N. Tirkey told Indian Express that the accused claimed that around 5 am, they caught Isar “lurking around the area and thought that he was a thief. They asked him questions but he was unable to reply properly since he was mentally challenged. They then tied him to an electric pole and thrashed him.”
Neighbours and family members of Isar denied claims that he was mentally challenged.
Mohammed Samim, a neighbour, stated, “It is entirely untrue that Isar had any mental disabilities. I have known him for a long time. Accusations of theft against him are baseless. He was subjected to this brutality solely because he was Muslim and had taken prasad.”
Another neighbour, Shama Parveen, added, “I have known Isar since his childhood. He was a well-behaved young man.”
Lubib Bashir, the general secretary of the Fraternity Movement, who had visited Isar’s house, told The Wire that this is not an isolated incident and that many a time in the recent past Hindu religious celebrations have escalated into violence against Muslims.