On Sunday 16, 2021, a group of 15 men killed a gym trainer Asif Khan for not chanting Jay Shree Ram, Hindi-religious verse, reportedly. The relatives of the lynched Muslim stated that he was travelling along his cousins to Sohna from Khalilur, his hometown, to get medicines. The group caught him off guard, stopped the car, and attacked all of them. Everyone escaped expect Asif because the murderers took him to some other place, reportedly to outskirts of Sohna and beat him to death. Rashid on the other hand is still struggling between life and death.
What the Family of Asif Khan Has to Say on This?
The gym trainer Asif Khan had a small dispute with a group of people a few months ago, the brother stated. Other than that, the neighbors and Wasif, who was also beaten by the group mentioned that they had a clash three months back. It was resolved by locals and police. As per his statement, no one suspected that they would face something this brutal.
According to khan’s father, Zakir Hussain, three cars filled with fifteen men sabotaged Asif’s vehicle and beat them all. They pulled khan out of the car, kidnapped him, and took him to Nangli village outside Sohna. They mercilessly assaulted him, dumped his body at the spot and left.
Family Demands Justice
On May 17, the family of the murdered started protesting against the criminals. They refused to bury the body before seeing the culprits behind bars. The police took action after the protest and arrested the accused men including Patwari alias Sandeep, Advani, Bheem, Rishi, Soni, Kota, Anoop, Balla, Nathu, Mahendra, Kuldeep, Raju, Kala, Sandeep, and others. These men have also committed multiple crimes, according to police and locals. Soon after the necessary arrests, the Asif’s family buried the body.
Was This an Attack Ignited by Islamophobia?
The attack on the gym trainer Asif Khan infuriated the public. They raised questions against the extremists who killed an innocent Muslim man. According to reports, the arrested men forced Khan to chant Jay Shree Raam before taking his life. Several posted on social media to raise awareness among people
Islamophobia has been rampant in Modi’s India. The incidents of mob lynching have increased in the country since BJP came into power. The government has taken several steps like the introduction of the Citizenship Amendment Act and revocation of Article 370 that ended the special status of Indian occupied Kashmir. Apart from this Muslims have been facing huge discrimination in different spheres of life. There have been reports of Muslims finding it difficult to get a house on rent in cities like Bengaluru.
The Reason of Murder According to Haryana Police
According to the statements of Haryana Police officials, the murder was not a byproduct of extremism against Muslim community. In their view, the only reason behind the killing of gym trainer Asif Khan was the dispute between the groups.
Contradictory to that, certain people familiar with the conflict between the groups mentioned that the clashes were not brutal enough to result in the murder of an innocent.
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