Protesters clashed with police yesterday with at least two people killed in riots sparked by a survey investigating if a 17th-century mosque was built on a temple.
Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav accused the BJP-led government of orchestrating the unrest to distract from allegations of electoral malpractice in recent bypolls.
“Two persons were confirmed dead,” Pawan Kumar, a police officer in Sambhal in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, said, adding that 16 police officers were “seriously injured” during the clashes.
The Press Trust of India news agency quoted officials saying three people had died.
Street battles broke out when a team of surveyors entered the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal on orders from a local court.
Protesters yesterday hurled rocks at police, who fired tear gas canisters to clear the crowd.
“The Supreme Court should immediately take cognizance of the conspiracy to spread tension in the name of survey and a case of disturbing peace and harmony should be registered against those who took sloganeers with them with the aim of disturbing social harmony and the Bar Association should also take disciplinary and punitive action against them. There was no hope from the UP government and administration, nor is there any now,” read a rough translation of another of Yadav’s posts on X.
SP MP Zia Ur Rehman Barq also criticised the survey, citing the Places of Worship Act, 1991. “The Jama Masjid of Sambhal is a historic site. The Supreme Court had ruled that religious places as they existed in 1947 must remain unchanged,” Barq said.
Armed police personnel stand guard following violence near the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal yesterday.
