Man sells chicken wrapped in paper with Hindu gods, arrested
At a time when religious tensions are running high across India, a fresh incident from Uttar Pradesh has come to light. A man was allegedly found selling chicken on a piece of paper featuring images of Hindu gods and deities, reported PTI. The police later arrested him for "hurting religious sentiments" as well as attacking the cops when they arrived to detain him.
- This incident comes just a few days after two men brutally murdered a tailor in Udaipur for reportedly "hurting" their religious sentiments in a Facebook post supporting the now-suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma, who made controversial remarks about Prophet Muhammad.
- A similar incident occurred in Amravati, Maharashtra, last month where a 54-year-old chemist was fatally stabbed for the same reason by two assailants.
The incident occurred on Sunday when some individuals complained that the man, Talib Hussain, offended their religious feelings by selling chicken in his shop on a sheet of paper with a Hindu god and goddess. When a police team arrived at Hussain's shop in Sambhal to arrest him, he allegedly assaulted the cops with a knife with the intent to kill, the police stated.
Hussain has been charged with violating IPC Sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on the basis of religion, race, place of birth, and residence), 295A (intentional and malicious acts aimed at outraging the religious feelings of any group by disrespecting its religion or religious beliefs), and 307 (attempt to murder). More details about the case are awaited as an investigation is underway.
Communal tensions across the country have been on the rise for the past few months. However, Sharma's controversial statements against the Prophet Muhammad and his wife in May triggered violent protests across India and led to several police complaints against her as well.
To recall, during a TV channel debate on the Gyanvapi Mosque row in May, Sharma stated since Muslims were insulting the Hindu faith by calling the unearthed Shivling a fountain, certain aspects of their religious scriptures may be mocked as well. She then made a mention of Prophet Muhammad's marriage, too. Her remarks sparked uproar and elicited responses from religious organizations and political parties.
Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman, and Kuwait summoned India's ambassadors and handed over their protest notes. Other Muslim-majority countries that raised the issue with India include Afghanistan, Indonesia, Maldives, Jordan, and Libya. The Centre termed BJP's now-suspended national spokesperson Nupur Sharma's and her colleague Naveen Jindal's views as "fringe elements". Facing criticism, the BJP suspended spokesperson Sharma and expelled Jindal on June 5.
When senior advocate Maninder Singh, appearing for Sharma, recently told the Supreme Court that she had apologized for the remarks and withdrew her comments, the top court stated that she should have gone to the TV and apologized to the nation. The apex court also said that Sharma was "single-handedly responsible for what is happening in the country (referring to the recent communal tensions)."
