By Team Clarion
NEW DELHI – A horrific video has gone around on social media, showing Satyam Pandit, a self-proclaimed Hindu leader, leading a group that broke into the Wazirabad cemetery in North Delhi. The miscreants used hammers to damage graves, tried to harm the bodies inside, and then poured petrol on them before setting everything alight. This happened on the day of Holi, right in the middle of Ramadan, when Muslims were fasting and praying for peace.
The video, which has been shared by thousands, captures the men shouting as they smash the headstones. They also burned the sheets that cover the graves. People watching the clip can see the fire spreading and smoke rising from the ground. One man in the group is heard saying bad words about the dead Muslims buried there.
This is not the first time Satyam Pandit has been in the news for such acts. Just a week before, he made another video from the same cemetery. In that clip, he spoke in a way that stirred up hate between Hindus and Muslims. He posted it online to spoil the good relations between the two groups. Many believe that the video encouraged other bad people to come and do this damage.
The cemetery caretaker, Mahfooz Khan, was very upset when he saw what happened. He said, “Some bad people came into the cemetery and caused a lot of harm to the graves. They even tried to damage the bodies of our loved ones buried there. We told the police about it right away.”
Mahfooz added that the cemetery is under the Waqf Board and there is a case about it before the high court. He explained, “The court has ordered fencing for the cemetery, but still these people are trying to break the peace between Hindus and Muslims.”
Local Muslims quickly went to the cemetery after the attack to fix the broken graves. They cleaned up the mess and put new sheets on the damaged spots. One resident, who lives near the cemetery and did not want his name shared, fearing reprisal, said, “Our hearts are broken. This is a place where we remember our family who have passed away. To see it attacked like this is too much. We are peaceful people, but this makes us worry about our safety.”
The police from Timarpur station have started looking into the matter based on the video. They reached the spot soon after and are talking to witnesses. A police officer, who spoke without giving his name, said, “We are checking the video and will take action against those who did this. No one can break the law like this.”
But many Muslims are asking why the police did not act sooner. They point out that if the police had done something about Satyam Pandit’s first video, this bigger attack might not have happened.
This story was originally published in clarionindia.net. Read the full story here.
