Srinagar: A group of suspected Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) activists, some reportedly armed, have resorted to terrorising the Muslim community in Jammu’s Doda district, prompting the J&K police to launch an investigation into the matter.
Doda’s senior superintendent of police Javid Iqbal told The Wire that the police were probing the matter. “We have received a complaint and an investigation has been started. Once we verify the facts, we will take action against anyone found guilty of breaking the law,” he said.
A complaint filed with the Doda police, a copy of which is with The Wire, alleged that the main suspect, identified as Anirudh Bhau, arrived in the town’s Nehru Chowk between 12 am and 1 am in the intervening night of August 13-14 along with a group of associates.
“Bhau was armed with a sword, while three to four men who were accompanying him were carrying iron rods and canes. They broke the locks of a local shop, alleging that he [its owner] had stored cow meat. They also filmed the episode on camera,” said Barkat Ali, who filed the police complaint.
According to the Indian Express, police filed an FIR against Bhau, invoking charges relating to criminal trespass, intimidation and breach of the peace.
Bhau is Doda district president of the VHP.
The banner photo on his Facebook page features him with the BJP’s J&K chief Ravinder Raina. He is also seen in an undated photo of a Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh function in Doda with ex-MLA Shakti Singh Parihar. In another photo, he is seen with former deputy commissioner (DC) of Doda, Vishesh Paul Mahajan, who is now Reasi DC.
In his complaint, Ali alleged that Bhau, who is reported to be a lower-rung employee at the Government Medical College in Doda, surfaced again at around 10 pm on August 15 in a Chevrolet car with the license number JK 02 AR 0001 on Bharat Road in Doda and barged into a bakery along with an associate. Ali identified the car as having a VHP flag on its bonnet.
“He accused the shop owner of selling cow meat and asked him to shut down his premises permanently or be prepared for death. He said he wouldn’t allow Muslims to do their business in Doda. After a large number of people gathered in the area, he fled from the spot,” Ali, a resident of Doda’s Akramabad locality, said in his complaint.
Anirudh Bhau (left, holding a stick), with ex-J&K MLA Shakti Singh Parihar. Photo: Facebook.
The complainant stated that Bhau fled from the spot in a car with the license number JK 16 3024 while abandoning his Chevrolet sedan. It was not immediately known whether the car was seized by the cops after the incident.
A video of the incident, which circulated on social media, showed a group of men arguing with policemen who seem to have arrived at the spot after Bhau’s escape. The agitated men can be seen raising pro-Islam slogans while accusing the cops of shielding the culprits.
“People are being harassed unnecessarily by these goons, who seem to be enjoying official patronage. Has the government given him [Bhau] the mandate to search the houses of Muslims? He is carrying a US-made pistol for which a license is issued by the home ministry. Who has given him the permission?” Hassan Babur Nehru, a Doda-based activist, alleged.
An undated video shared with The Wire by a local showed Bhau resorting to firing in the air using a single-barrel gun along with his associates with loud Punjabi music playing in the background. The Wire couldn’t immediately verify the authenticity of the video, but it is not linked to the incident in question.
In another video, he can be seen threatening barbecue sellers in Doda through a TV interview to shut their business, saying it was offensive to the Hindu faith. “Otherwise our organisation is very big and we know how to deal with it. We will not allow this business to be carried out in Doda,” he is seen saying.
Another local from Doda claimed that Bhau was actively working with the BJP.
“He is involved in several illegal activities that are aimed to promote disharmony among communities. There are allegations of drug trafficking against him as well. If a person from the Muslim community were to open fire, they would surely be booked under the anti-terror law,” the local, who spoke with The Wire on condition of anonymity fearing reprisal, said.
The Wire has reached out to Bhau and J&K BJP chief Raina for their comments. The story will be updated as and when their response is received.
Speaking to the Indian Express, J&K VHP president Rajesh Gupta said the case against Bhau was “fake” and alleged that the “mafia involved in the sale of beef” pressured police to file the FIR against him.
Gupta also claimed that local police seized “beef” from a shop in Doda a few days earlier at Bhau’s instance.
On his photo with Bhau, Reasi DC Mahajan said that the Doda VHP president had come to wish him on the day of his transfer.
Anirudh Bhau with Reasi deputy commissioner V.P. Mahajan (second from left). Photo: Facebook.
This is not the first time that Hindu right-wing activists have been accused of terrorising Muslims in J&K.
In 2022, several activists of the Bajrang Dal, which is the VHP’s youth wing, stormed a government college in Jammu, alleging that Muslim students were offering prayers on campus, even though no law disallows religious activities on campuses. The police had to intervene to clear them from the college.
Last year, the VHP announced that it was setting up village-level committees for the empowerment of Hindus belonging to society’s lower strata.
In 2018, members of Bajrang Dal attacked a pickup truck over the suspicion that drivers were transporting cows for slaughter.
In 2017, an eight-year-old girl and two women among five nomadic Bakkerwals suffered injuries when suspected VHP and Bajrang Dal activists attacked them in Reasi district. Two victims suffered fractures in the attack, prompting the police to file an FIR.
This article was updated at 4:20 pm on Sunday (August 18) with information on the FIR against Bhau.