Idol desecration sparks tension

By Mohammad Iqbal

JAIPUR, AUG. 18. The communal tension prevailing in Bhilwara district of Rajasthan took a serious turn today with the reported dismantling of an idol of a folk deity of the Mali community at a ``chabutra'' - platform - in Subhash Nagar on the outskirts of Bhilwara city. The idol was found broken this morning while the platform was intact.

The agitated Malis first had an altercation with the officials of the Urban Improvement Trust (UIT) - which had acquired the land near the Kothari river, where the platform was situated, a decade ago - and later closed down the nearby Sabzi Mandi. The idol was that of ``Jujhaarji'', whom the Malis worship to invoke blessings for their ancestors.

Police have registered a case under Section 295 (defiling a place of worship) of the Indian Penal Code and launched a search for the culprits. Malis refused to install a new idol at the platform, saying its consecration would be possible only at an ``auspicious'' time, which would take another two months to begin.

Prohibitory orders are already in force in the entire district and will continue till September 30. Since the land, where the platform was built, now belongs to the UIT, the District Collector, Mr. Sudhansh Pant, has reportedly assured the community that no objection would be taken to the installation of the idol after two months.

The Malis have been classified as an Other Backward Class (OBC) in Rajasthan. The Chief Minister, Mr. Ashok Gehlot, too belongs to this community.

Bhilwara district has been witnessing a spate of communal incidents in the past one month. Today's incident was the fifth in a row after the desecration of a mosque in Pander village on Monday last. Earlier, a 16th century mosque was demolished in Asind and several shrines were damaged in Jahazpur.

No criminal involved in any of these incidents has been arrested so far. Jahazpur town witnessed a bandh for the third consecutive day today on a call issued by the Hindu Sangathan Manch protesting against the suspension of three police officers following arson in the Pander mosque.

A delegation of the Muslim community, led by the Imam of Jama Masjid of Bhilwara, Maulvi Hafiz-ur-Rahman, submitted a memorandum to the District Collector today demanding the immediate arrest of the culprits responsible for all the incidents. It alleged that some anti-social elements were deliberately engineering trouble to create communal discord in the district.

The district administration has announced that no dharna or demonstration would be allowed during the imposition of prohibitory orders. Despite the explicit orders, hundreds of people had gathered on the outskirts of Jahazpur on Friday on Hindu Sangathan Manch's call to hold a protest rally to demand reinstatement of the suspended police officials.

The Rapid Action Force deployed in Jahazpur has staged flag- marches twice to keep the situation under control. While Hindu Sangathan Manch has announced that the bandh would continue ``indefinitely'', the shops owned by the minority community remained open.

Meanwhile, a clash between two communities at Mohangarh town in Jaisalmer district of western Rajasthan has led to tension in that area. About a dozen people were reportedly injured in the clash on Thursday evening and two of them were admitted to the Government Hospital in Jaisalmer. Four persons have since been arrested in this connection.

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