Blatant Anti-Muslim Sloganeering At Jantar Mantar, Journalist Assaulted, Delhi Police Booked Ashwini Upadhyay and Others

On Monday morning, several videos of Jantar Mantar went viral in which ‘Jai Shree Ram’ slogans can be heard. Taking note of the communal sloganeering during a protest against ‘colonial era laws’, Delhi police has registered an FIR and has detained Ashwani Upadhyay, Vinod Sharma, Deepak Singh, Vinit Kranti, Preet Singh, and Deepak. They received nationwide condemnation for their open call for Muslim genocide.

They have been booked under Section 153A (promoting enmity between different groups) and Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code apart from Section 51 of the Disaster Management Act for the violation of Covid-norms.

Bharat Jodo Movement

On Sunday, former Supreme Court lawyer and BJP Delhi BJP spokesperson Ashwini Upadhyay has arranged a protest under the banner Bharat Jodo Movement (Unite India Movement) during a March for ‘Colonial Laws and Make Uniform Laws’. They were demanding to implement the Uniform Civil Code. The officials also stated that no permission was acquired to stage that protest.

In the purported videos, some individuals can be seen shouting “Hindustan mein rehna hoga toh ‘Jai Shree Ram’ kehna hoga (If you want to live in Hindustan, you must say ‘Jai Shree Ram’), Muslims will be slaughtered, they will shout ‘Jai Shree Ram’.

Journalist Assaulted To Chant Jai Shree Ram: #ISupportAnmolPritam

Apart from these anti-Muslim slogans, another video of the event surfaced over the internet. In the purported video, a journalist who works for a YouTube media channel National Dastak was surrounded by a mob at Jantar Mantar while he was reporting and asked him to chant ‘Jai Shree Ram’.

“When I reached, a group of about 300-400 people were chanting slogans such as ‘Jab mulle kaate jaynege to Ram-Ram chillayenge’ (When the Muslims will be killed, they will yell and shout Ram Ram),” Anmol said during an interview.

He further added that he chanted ‘Vande Mataram’ and ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ but refused to say ‘Jai Shree Ram’ considering it a political phrase. “In my personal opinion, I think it is a political phrase. If I feel like saying it, I will,” he said.

Ashwini Upadhyay Denied Involvement

However, Ashwini Upadhyay has refuted the allegations and involvement or knowledge of the anti-Muslim sloganeering. He alleged that it was an attempt to malign his event.

“The rally was from 10am to 12pm. Whereas the sloganeering happened around 5pm. Our rally was outside the Park hotel [in central Delhi] but the slogans were given near Parliament house Police Station. I do not know who they were,” Upadhyay said.

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