Communal tension developed in Kishtawada district of Jammu and Kashmir on October 30 after the publication of objectionable pictures of the Qur’ān and Ka’ba on social networking site Facebook. People gathered in a large number to show their anger and pelted stones on police stations. They said that the Police Department did not take any action until it was too late and the objectionable matter spread like fire over the internet for a long time. The police took notice of it only when the people came out of their houses and protested.
Later the police arrested Kishori Sharma, Kirti Sharma and Bansi Lal on the charge of uploading blasphemous photos of the holy Qur’ān and Ka’ba. The Imam of Kishtawara Jama Masjid, however, has called a bandh in the district as a protest. Two of the three accused, Bansi Lal and Kishori Sharma are working as teachers in Department of Education. The District Commissioner has dismissed them from their job. Earlier, more than 18 people had died in the state during a protest against release of a blasphemous movie in America.