Hundreds of Muslims fled Bihar villages for fear of police

Patna: Hundreds of men and women of about dozen villages in Goplaganj district of Bihar have fled their homes for fear of police. Only a few elderly people, most of them are unable to walk, can be seen there. They too are frightened. The reason is the FIR in which 137 people have been made accused for attacking a police team and torching a police vehicle – 37 are named and 100 unnamed.

On 8th July, a private electrician was electrocuted while doing some repair work at an electric pole at Majha market area under Majha police station in North Bihar’s Gopalganj district. As the news spread about the death of electrician Kanhaiyya Sharma hundreds of residents of Majha village and several neighboring villages including Pipra, Danapur, Jagannath and Phulwaria – all Muslim dominated -- gathered at the spot and blocked the road to force the administration for compensation to the family of the diseased.

A police team led by SDPO Sanjay Kumar reached the site but due to huge number of protestors, the situation went out of control. The mob pelted stone at the police and torched the police vehicle. Police resorted to lathicharge and fired in the air to disperse the crowd.

137 people made accused in FIR

Later police filed an FIR in which 137 people were made accused, of them 37 are named and 100 unnamed. According to Reyazul Haque, former MLA of RJD and sitting district president of the party, of 37 named accused 31 are Muslims.

Talking to TCN over phone, Haque, who two days back visited the villages, said the entire area is terrified, people have fled their homes and those still in the villages are terrified. He said when his van reached a village and his bodyguards stepped out of the van, villagers started fleeing thinking the police have come to arrest them. Haque said he cried and shouted and told them that they are not police and only then they came back.

Opposition blames BJP MLA

RJD leader Haque alleged that on the instigation of local BJP MLA, police are terrorizing the residents. He, however, categorically said that police must take action against the guilty but must not terrorize innocents. As 100 persons have been made unnamed accused, old enmity has come out to implicate innocents.

Haque said that police must act to establish peace in the area. They should take the villagers into confidence.

Local Urdu journalist Adam Ali also said that a number of people have fled their homes for fear of arrest. Police have raided several homes. Ali said that only few elderly people are left in villages, otherwise men, women and children of 10-15 villages have fled. Some 25 people have already been arrested.