Sambhal violence was a 'pre-planned conspiracy': Judicial Commission

The Judicial Commission report on the Sambhal violence called it a "pre-planned conspiracy" by local leaders to oppose a court-ordered survey. It states police didn't fire fatal shots and names SP MP Zia ur Rahman Barq for inciting the mob.

The Judicial Commission's report on the November 2024 violence in Sambhal was tabled in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly on Wednesday.

Violence a 'Pre-Planned Conspiracy', Not Spontaneous

According to the report, the violence was a "pre-planned conspiracy" and not a spontaneous flare-up. The report stated that bullets which caused the deaths were not fired by the police. It added that rioters attempted to loot police weapons during the chaos.

The judicial inquiry commission was constituted to investigate the violence that erupted on November 24, 2024, outside the Shahi Jama Masjid in Sambhal during a court-ordered survey of the ASI-protected monument. The violence resulted in four deaths and left dozens of police personnel injured.

The survey was ordered following a petition filed by senior advocate Vishnu Shanker Jain, which sought to determine whether the mosque was originally a temple. According to the report, the violence was "orchestrated" to oppose the survey and to assert control over the mosque.

The commission further said that facts related to the court case on the survey were concealed and distorted information was fed to the muslim community in the days leading up to the violence. The commission described the response of the district administration and police as effective and restrained under the circumstances.

Commission Implicates SP Leaders, Mosque Committee

The commission has named and raised questions regarding the roles of several local leaders, including Samajwadi Party MP from Sambhal, Zia ur Rahman Barq, and Suhail Iqbal, son of SP MLA Iqbal Mahmood, along with members of the Jama Masjid management committee, including its President Zafar Ali and Secretary Mashhood Ali Farooqui.

"From the testimonies of the witnesses, it is clear that the incident of November 24, 2024, was the result of a conspiracy by Zia-ur-Rehman Barq (MP Sambhal), Zafar Ali (Advocate/President, Jama Masjid), Mashhood Ali Farooqui (Advocate/Secretary, Jama Masjid), other members of the Jama Masjid management committee, and Sohel Iqbal (son/representative of the local MLA), in order to establish dominance driven by their political ambitions, wishing to maintain their control over the mosque," excerpts from the report stated.

Details of Incitement and Mobilization

The commission said these leaders "conspired" during the survey proceedings and called upon members of the Muslim community to gather at the mosque and oppose the survey. It noted that inflammatory speeches were delivered and messages were circulated urging people to reach the Jama Masjid with "stones and weapons to obstruct officials."

The gathered mob made all attempts to enter the Jama Masjid and threatened everyone with slogans such as 'Nara-e-Takbeer, Allah-hu-Akbar' and 'Gustakh-e-Nabi ki ek hi saza, Sar tan se juda - Sar tan se juda,' the report added.

"It is our duty to follow our religion and protect our religious places. The way the Constitution is being throttled here, the way the government is tearing apart the Constitution; we are ready to fight for this mosque. Inshallah, we will always be present in every way to protect the Jama Masjid. We will not let religious places and mosques that existed in our state and country before 1947 be snatched away," Barq said, according to the report.

"This speech made the public believe that someone was trying to usurp the Jama Masjid through a survey, which consequently led to violent incidents during the survey on November 24, 2024," the report stated.

The report also refers to a speech made outside the mosque in which it was claimed that religious places existing before 1947 were under threat. The commission said such statements created a belief among the public that the survey was an attempt to take over the Jama Masjid, which contributed to the escalation on November 24.

"On the morning of November 24, 2024, messages were broadcast for a large number of members of the Muslim community to gather around the Jama Masjid with weapons and stones to oppose the survey proceedings and harm police and administrative officials, so that in the future no non-Muslim would even think of entering the mosque, as is clear from the evidence," it said.

The commission stated that false and misleading information was spread within the Muslim community regarding the survey. It alleged that it was conveyed that Hindus were making claims on the mosque and seeking its demolition.

"Zia-ur-Rehman Barq gave an inflammatory speech to the gathered crowd under the pretext of addressing media persons outside the Jama Masjid," it said.

The report said, "Similarly, on November 22, 2024, after Friday prayers on the steps of the Jama Masjid, he addressed the media and the congregation, stating: "The police administration of Sambhal and the officers of the Uttar Pradesh government--I don't know what was happening, the court's order came, and within an hour or two, they brought people here to conduct a survey. What was the hurry, what compulsion did they have to conduct the survey so quickly? I am saying openly that it was a mosque, is a mosque, and, Inshallah, will remain a mosque until Doomsday."

Regarding the specific role of individuals, the report said Suhail Iqbal (son of SP MLA Iqbal Mahmood) entered the Jama Masjid in the early hours of November 24 and later made statements that incited the crowd. It also cited testimony that he spent several hours at the house of a mosque committee member located near the mosque and made repeated visits to the gathering outside.

The commission further said that facts related to the court case on the survey were concealed and distorted information was fed to the muslim community in the days leading up to the violence.

"Are we people to be cowed down by the police administration and the government? We are the masters of this country, not servants or slaves." In this manner, Zia-ur-Rehman Barq created a rebellious atmosphere against Hindus, administrative officials, and the police authorities of Sambhal by giving misleading information to members of the Muslim community that the Jama Masjid was in immediate peril ... emphasizing that "just like our mosque was snatched away in Ayodhya, we will not let this be snatched away," the report said.

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