<p>A series of alleged attacks by the “cat” on the women at nights in which many of them “suffered injuries” and the “failure” of the police to “shoot” it has forced to people to look for help elsewhere—the “tantriks” (exorcists). While some term the “cat” as a “devil” sent by the Almighty to “punish the sinners(people),” the rationalists view the attacks as a “conspiracy to disrupt the law and order and foment communal tensions.”<br /><br />Islamic Foundation of India president Mohammad Ali rubbished the “attacks by a cat” and instead claimed that it could be the handiwork of some “anti-social elements” who wanted to disrupt communal harmony.<br />The Foundation has demanded that the government should strictly deal with rumour mongers. “We have asked the senior police officials to take a serious view of the alleged attacks by the cat and shoot it at sight,” UP Additional DGP (law and order) A K Jain said here on Tuesday.<br /><br />He said that night patroling had been intensified in the town and the administration has been asked to be on the alert. District authorities are worried over reports that the members of the minority community plan to hold demonstrations to protest the police failure to check the attacks.<br /><br />The worries of the authorities have been compounded by the ongoing “Ramzan” (the month of fasting for the Muslims) and that the town has a history of communal violence.<br /><br />Out to cash in on the scare, a “tantrik” on Monday also conducted rituals in some localities of Saharanpur during which some goats were “sacrificed” and mustard seeds were scattered to “ward off the devil.” While the “baba” (exorcist) claimed that the “cat” has been “tamed”, reports of alleged attacks continued to pour in from different localities, police officials said.<br /><br />A few years ago, there was a similar scare in eastern UP districts where people alleged about the existence of a gang of “muh nochwa” (face scratchers), which attacked them at night in the darkness.</p>
<p>A series of alleged attacks by the “cat” on the women at nights in which many of them “suffered injuries” and the “failure” of the police to “shoot” it has forced to people to look for help elsewhere—the “tantriks” (exorcists). While some term the “cat” as a “devil” sent by the Almighty to “punish the sinners(people),” the rationalists view the attacks as a “conspiracy to disrupt the law and order and foment communal tensions.”<br /><br />Islamic Foundation of India president Mohammad Ali rubbished the “attacks by a cat” and instead claimed that it could be the handiwork of some “anti-social elements” who wanted to disrupt communal harmony.<br />The Foundation has demanded that the government should strictly deal with rumour mongers. “We have asked the senior police officials to take a serious view of the alleged attacks by the cat and shoot it at sight,” UP Additional DGP (law and order) A K Jain said here on Tuesday.<br /><br />He said that night patroling had been intensified in the town and the administration has been asked to be on the alert. District authorities are worried over reports that the members of the minority community plan to hold demonstrations to protest the police failure to check the attacks.<br /><br />The worries of the authorities have been compounded by the ongoing “Ramzan” (the month of fasting for the Muslims) and that the town has a history of communal violence.<br /><br />Out to cash in on the scare, a “tantrik” on Monday also conducted rituals in some localities of Saharanpur during which some goats were “sacrificed” and mustard seeds were scattered to “ward off the devil.” While the “baba” (exorcist) claimed that the “cat” has been “tamed”, reports of alleged attacks continued to pour in from different localities, police officials said.<br /><br />A few years ago, there was a similar scare in eastern UP districts where people alleged about the existence of a gang of “muh nochwa” (face scratchers), which attacked them at night in the darkness.</p>