An 80-year-old Muslim farmer, Mohammed Israel, was brutally assaulted and forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ by two men in Amarpur Garhi village, located in Deoband town of Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur district.
The incident occurred on May 11 and led to the immediate arrest of the accused.
According to reports, Israel was watering his fields when two young men, identified as Akash and Ahvi, approached him. After asking his name and discovering his religious identity, they allegedly forced him to chant the Hindu religious slogan. When he resisted, the men began beating him with sticks and later escalated the assault by attacking him with a shovel.
The elderly farmer sustained serious injuries and was left profusely bleeding. Nearby locals, hearing his cries for help, rushed to his aid and rescued him.
Police arrested the two accused on the same day. Authorities stated that there was no personal enmity between the attackers and the victim, and that the violence appeared to be driven by religious hatred in the heat of the moment.
A First Information Report (FIR) has been registered against the accused under several sections of the Indian Penal Code. These include Section 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), Section 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), Section 351(1) (criminal intimidation), Section 196(1) (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, etc.), and Section 299 (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings).
The incident has sparked outrage in the local community and raised concerns over rising hate crimes targeting minorities in the region. Mohammed Israel is currently recovering from his injuries. — With Agencies Inputs
This story was originally published in muslimmirror.com.