Jamaat Demands Arrest of Nupur Sharma, Impartial Investigation, Equitable Action Against All Lynchings Across India

Syed Sadatullah Husaini, president Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, while welcoming the observation of the Supreme Court that Nupur Sharma is single-handedly responsible for what is happening in the country and should apologise to the nation, said, strong action should be taken against Nupur Sharma. Arrest her immediately, he said, adding that mere apology may not be enough.

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Syed Sadatullah Husaini, president Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, while welcoming the observation of the Supreme Court that Nupur Sharma is single-handedly responsible for what is happening in the country and should apologise to the nation, said, strong action should be taken against Nupur Sharma. Arrest her immediately, he said, adding that mere apology may not be enough.

The Jamaat president also demanded strong action against politicians aiding and abetting hate crimes as also against media houses propagating hate day in and out. He further demanded impartial investigation and strict punishment against all lynchings that took place in various parts of the country, including recent incident in Udaipur, as per the law of the land without partisan approach. The statement was made by Husaini while addressing monthly press briefing of Jamaat at its headquarters on July 2.

In a reply to a question, the JIH president said, if only apology can replace punishment, then why should we have jails, courts and the system in place that is here to punish the wrongdoers?

The Jamaat leader also claimed that there is connection between the Udaipur murder and a series of mob lynchings across the nation, including the death of an elderly Hindu man at Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh, on the basis of mistaken identity. He also said that politicians and the media involved in inciting hatred were to be blamed for the hate-filled atmosphere we are in today. He also demanded enactment of blasphemy law to punish those insulting the religious personalities of any faith.

The JIH president said, “There shouldn’t be different rules applied to different accused depending on their religious affiliation. In response to a query on the police detaining the co-founder of the Alt News website Mohammed Zubair while allowing former BJP leader Nupur Sharma to walk freely, he said, “There should be no double standard in taking action against individuals involved in inciting hate. Action should be taken as per the law of the land and not as per the colour of the accused.”

Earlier, Engineer Mohammad Salim, JIH vice-president, expressed concern at the detention of well-known human rights advocate Teesta Setalvad and former Gujarat DGP R.B. Sreekumar for no other reason than the fact that he had testified in front of an investigation commission looking into the anti-Muslim riots in Gujarat in 2002.

According to him, Zubair was only detained because he exposed Nupur Sharma’s offensive remarks online. This demonstrates the direction the nation was moving. He asserted that this is an assault on the freedom of speech and democratic principles of India.