Muslims in India have felt insecure since a mob lynched Muslim villager, Mohammad Akhlaq, in the Dadri region of the northern state of Uttar Pradesh three weeks ago. Akhlaq was kicked and beaten with stones and bricks by a Hindu mob allegedly because of rumors that he had slaughtered a cow or consumed beef and stored it at home. The mob paid no heed to the words of Akhlaq and his family members who insisted that they had only stored mutton and not beef in their fridge. The police who reached the scene took the stored meat and sent it for testing. The forensic test proved that the meat found in Akhlaq's house was mutton and not beef. Around 200 villagers attacked Akhlaq's house and dragged him and his family members, including his mother, outside. They repeatedly kicked Akhlaq and his son Danish, and hit them with bricks. Akhlaq was killed and his son was badly injured in the horrific attack. The condition of the seriously injured son, who had been in a coma battling for his life, has now improved and he is in a stable condition. I wish him a speedy recovery. The handling of this crime by India's federal government is still a matter which evokes surprise and outrage. Prime Minister Narendra Modi broke his silence only 10 days after the mob killing of Akhlaq. However, his belated comments on the issue were nothing to do with the horrendous crime of an innocent citizen being killed by a hysterical mob of more than 200. Modi's comments came in the form of preaching to Hindus and Muslims saying that Hindus and Muslims should fight poverty and not each other. He said: "Hindus should decide whether to fight Muslims or poverty. Muslims have to decide whether to fight Hindus or poverty." These are sweet words, but inappropriate from the prime minister of a country which considers itself to be the world's largest democracy. Modi could have flown to the region where the barbaric crime occurred and ordered the arrest of those who incited the mob and committed the crime. Keeping silent about such a sensitive issue only serves to make people feel insecure. Modi should have followed the example of the Norwegian prime minister who led a popular march protesting the killing by racist extremists of a young Norwegian man of African origin. The demonstrators demanded the maximum penalty for the killers and eventually the demand was met. This allowed citizens of Norway from all segments of society to feel secure when they saw that those at the helm of the government took to the street themselves to lead demonstrations to demand the maximum punishment for the white people who committed the crime against a young man whose only "fault" was that his skin was not white. What we see in Norway and Europe in general is that the concerned authorities are taking decisive steps to curb racism and to take penal action against those who incite violence and spread intolerance in society. They are keen to stop any infringement of the rights of citizens irrespective of their religion, sect, color or creed. I wish the leadership in India would do the same as it is a democratic country, which hosts diverse religions and cultures. I also hope that the government of India will come forward to protect minorities and safeguard their rights as well as to prosecute those who incite hatred and intolerance among various segments of the country's pluralist society, no matter what the differences in religious beliefs and political affiliations may be. Prime Minister Modi's silence instead of taking stringent action against the vicious crime committed against an innocent civilian deserves neither excuse nor justification. His action was confined to preaching to Hindus and Muslims that they must decide to either fight each other or to unite to fight poverty. Such preaching should be delivered by a priest in a temple or an imam in a mosque. As a top official who enjoys executive power, the prime minister has to take tough action and punish those who perpetrate such crimes regardless of their ideological background, especially those who circulated rumors and lies that Akhlaq had slaughtered a cow, which is considered sacred by Hindus, or ate beef, and then carried out a barbaric attack on an innocent Muslim villager by hitting him and his family members with bricks and stones until he died. This was an immoral and inhuman act, and the perpetrators of such acts are not doing anything good for themselves or for their society and country. Such criminals have to be put behind bars and be prosecuted in accordance with the justice system. The prime minister's position on this issue has emboldened local leaders of his Hindu nationalist party in the north Indian state to such an extent that they have said that the Muslim man was killed as the result of a fight. Such comments are misleading and distort the facts. Another ruling party leader threatened police officials when they started an investigation into the crime, and this leader also led protest marches against the police. These are further instances of inciting violence and the perpetrators should be prosecuted. It is also to be noted that the country's Minister of Culture Mashesh Sharma, who represents in parliament the constituency where the mob lynching took place, does not seem to understand the seriousness of the incident. He described the lynching as an accident, while roundly rejecting the claims that the attack was premeditated. — Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi is a former Saudi diplomat who specializes in Southeast Asian affairs. He can be reached at [email protected]
