Telangana: Owaisi decries mob violence against Muslim man in Sangareddy

Hyderabad: AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi condemned the incident of alleged mob violence against a Muslim man from Sangareddy district for insulting a saffron flag with an ‘Om’ etched on it.

“A man was beaten up & paraded naked in Sangareddy, Telangana. Whatever his offensive behaviour, this kind of heinous mob violence is condemnable.@spsangareddy @TelanganaDGP & CoP Sangareddy must take strict action. Mob violence is a contagious disease & a strong deterrent effect is necessary,” he said in a post on X.

Identified as Abbas, hailing from Nagal Gidda village in Sangareddy District, he was arrested by police after the incident.

According to media reports, four others were also arrested and were sent to remand for allegedly helping him make the reel in which he was seen disrespecting the ‘Om’ flag.

“A counter case was lodged against the villagers who assaulted the youth and we are in search of those people,” Sangareddy Superintendent of Police (SP) Chennuri Rupesh told ThePrint.

“A meeting of elders from both faiths was convened to restore calm. There is no tension now,” he said, according to the report.

The police also stated that the accused recorded the video on the day of the consecration of the Ram idol at the newly constructed temple in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh.

“Tumhari aukaat humare pairon ki dhool (your status is the dust on our feet). We are Muslim, don’t forget it…,” a voice in the background can be heard saying in the video.

The police had booked five men including the Muslim man seen in the reel under IPC Sections 153A (promoting enmity between groups), 253A (offending religious beliefs), and 505 (2) (promoting hatred or ill-will).

The countercase lodged against those who allegedly assaulted the man was registered under IPC Sections 341 (wrongful restraint), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 505 (2) (statements conducing public mischief), and 506 (criminal intimidation).