Why is PM Narendra Modi silent through all this?

Communal incidents across states are politically inspired

The communal violence in the Jahangirpuri area of Delhi last Saturday and some subsequent incidents should not be seen in isolation from the communal confrontations and incidents in other parts of the country in the last few weeks. There is an underlying pattern in all these incidents and the responses to them have also followed a pattern. The trouble usually happens on days of religious importance to Hindus, such as Ram Navami and Hanuman Jayanti. The processions taken out on those days pass through areas where mosques are situated or where Muslims live in some strength. This was the case with the Jahangirpuri violence also. A procession for which there was no permission from the police moved along the road on which a mosque stood and the processionists raised provocative slogans. This is unacceptable, as was the stone-throwing from the mosque in reaction, in which some people, including policemen, were injured.

There are many questions pertaining to the incident. Why was the procession allowed to be taken out if there was no permission for it? Why was it allowed to go through areas where there was the possibility of trouble? Why were the participants in the procession allowed to carry weapons? Why were they allowed to shout provocative slogans near the mosque? Why did the police remove the names of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal after mentioning them in a statement? These questions are relevant because the conduct of Delhi Police has not been above board on earlier occasions such as the 2020 riots. The FIR does not mention any provocation by the processionists but says that the violence broke out after a man called Ansar and some others had an argument with the processionists. There is a dispute between the BJP and the AAP about which party Ansar belongs to. Both have tried to prove, with photographs, that he belongs to the other party.

The violence in Jahangirpuri and other places in a number of states in the last few days were manufactured events into which some planning had gone. They were not spontaneous communal clashes, but politically inspired and directed communal incidents. Very often, the minorities are given a difficult choice. They are forced to react to provocative slogans, gestures or actual violence. If they react with stones or by other means, they become rioters; if they don’t, they become cowards and lesser and unequal citizens who accept the domination of the majority. In most cases, it is difficult to get fair treatment and justice from the police and other authorities. All this raises the question: Why is the Prime Minister silent through all this?