Accidental death of Santram Valmiki, husband of a Sarpanch, triggers police action

Waquar Hasan

NEW DELHI – Dozens of houses belonging to poor Muslims have been demolished in Madhya Pradesh’s Murwas village in Vidisha district. Several Muslims from the village have also been arrested by the local police following a fight with Vishwa Hindu Prishad activists.

This happened after Santram Valmiki, husband of a Sarpanch, was mowed down by a tractor on Tuesday, which many say was an accident. The accused reportedly belong to the minority community, who were arrested soon after the killing.

Talking to Clarion India over the phone, community leader Anisurrahman said that after the death, local people helped the police in getting the accused arrested. “We searched and gave the accused to the police in order to avoid any problem,” he said.

He said that hours after the incident, Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Umakant Sharma gathered a crowd and abused Muslims as well as the police. The following day, the administration with 50-60 vehicles, bulldozers and other machines descended in the village and started demolishing the houses belonging to poor Muslims without any notice. The local administration claimed that the demolition was part of an anti-encroachment drive.

“When houses were being demolished, the victims were mourning and distressed with their luggage sitting helplessly. At that time, people from the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) reached there in four or five vehicles. They are saying that no house should be left out and all of them should be demolished,” said Anisurrahaman.

The distressed people, whose houses were being demolished, got angry seeing the VHP activists asking to demolish their houses. This led to a clash between the two groups. During the clash stones were pelted and fires opened. Later, locals blocked roads to register their protest against the VHP activists. At night, the police raided and held 22 Muslims for clashing with the VHP activists and blocking roads. Some of them were later released. Seventeen are still in police custody, he said.

Isamail is one of those whose house was demolished. He is a farmer and father to 5 children. He told Clarion India that his house was demolished without serving any notice. Currently, he is living in the open surrounded by debris of the razed house. He rejected the accusation of encroachment of land saying that he has papers of the land he has been living.

However, the administration claimed that the notice to vacate the land was served on March 14 to them.

Currently, section 144 has been imposed in the area by the police. On Tuesday, Congress leaders went to visit the family members of the deceased Valmiki. Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Kamal Nath reportedly formed a team and sent them to visit the family members of the deceased. But the police did not allow them citing curfew. They were detained.

After being denied opportunity to meet them, Congress leaders held a protest in front of the police and questioned as to why people from the other side were allowed to go and even have a fight with the locals when the accused were already arrested.