Bihar: Saffron Flag Hoisted on Mosque in Bhagalpur, One Held

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Abusive songs played on high-pitched DJs were muted in viral videos due to filthy wordings and netizens slammed such terrible attempts of the mob that purposely aimed to incite violence and communal riots

Team Clarion

NEW DELHI – A Hindutva worker was arrested on Monday after he hoisted a saffron flag on the dome of a mosque in Bihar’s Bhagalpur.

The man was arrested after being filmed climbing the mosque’s dome to hoist the flag as a procession for immersion of Kali idols passed by on Saturday evening near Tamtam Chowk under the jurisdiction of Lalmatiya police station in the city. A viral video showed members of a Hindutva group waving both saffron and Israeli flags.

The act has sparked widespread outrage.

The arrested person has been identified as Shivam Kumar. He was seen scaling the mosque’s dome to plant the saffron flag while the crowd cheered him on. The situation escalated even more due to the music being played during the procession, which included derogatory songs targeting the Muslim community.

“On 2-11-2024, the Bhagalpur police received information that a man was waving a flag of a particular colour from the outer wall of a religious place near Tamtam Chowk in the area of Lalmatiya police station. A video of the incident has gone viral on social media,” reads a police statement.

According to the police, the accused is from the Tuntun Sah area and has a criminal history as a case is filed against him at the Lalmatiya police station for extortion. A team of six policemen was formed to arrest the accused.

Abusive songs played on high-pitched DJs were muted in viral videos due to filthy wordings and netizens slammed such terrible attempts of the mob that purposely aimed to incite violence and communal riots.

As the video spread across social media, police deployed additional forces, including units from the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), to maintain order and reassure residents. 

Kumar is now facing charges under Section 88, which addresses actions that could disturb public peace.

It is feared that the incident can lead to deeper divisions in a city still healing from past communal violence. Bhagalpur had suffered riots in the year 1989 causing widespread mayhem and leading to the death of at least 1,000 people, mostly Muslims.

The presence of the Israeli flag during the procession has also raised eyebrows, prompting discussions about the motivations behind the act. However, authorities are yet to comment on any broader implications regarding the use of the Israeli flag during the procession.

However, the police action came only after netizens expressed outrage over the incident. 

Opposition leader and Bihar’s former deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav slammed Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over the incident.

“On the basis of the ground, encouragement, sponsorship and confidence received from Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, people of RSS and BJP are climbing mosques in Bhagalpur and hoisting flags. Now the people of the state are saying that due to his ill health, Shri Nitish Kumar has become more dangerous than RSS,” said Yadav.

When Prime Minister Narendra Modi condemned the attack on temples in Canada, many people on social media drew his attention toward what happened at Bhagalpur mosque by sharing photos and video of the incident.

“How about condemning this? Iske liye to Canada bhi nahi jana padega. Yahi pados mein hai, Bihar mein. Bol dijiye 2 shabd,” said Tarun Gautam while posting a photo of the Bhagalpur incident in response to the statement of PM Modi on the Canada temple attack.

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