In Patna, Muslims hail Atiq Ahmad as ‘martyr’; protest against CM Yogi

Demonstrators came out of the Jama Masjid in Patna after offering Eid al-Fitr prayers and started raising slogans alleging “conspiracy” behind the murder.

| Updated: 21 April, 2023 4:53 pm IST
Demonstrators also raised slogans against PM Narendra Modi and UP CM Yogi Adityanath.

New Delhi: After Friday’s prayers, a group of Muslims in chanted slogans hailing slain UP mafia Atiq Ahmad as “martyr” and protested against PM Narendra Modi and chief minister Yogi Adityanath, in Bihar’s capital Patna.

Atiq and his brother Ashraf, both facing around a hundred criminal cases, were shot dead by three assailants in the custody of the Uttar Pradesh Police in full media glare in Prayagraj last week.

Several Opposition figures have alleged that it was a premeditated conspiracy to carry out their murder even as two special investigation teams continue investigating the circumstances leading to the murder.

Enraged over the public killing, demonstrators came out of the Jama Masjid in Patna after offering Eid al-Fitr prayers and started raising slogans alleging “conspiracy” behind the murder.

“Long live, Atiq Ahmad!” shouted a demonstrator to the top of his voice. “The government, judiciary, media and court – all are complicit in this well-planned murder,” he alleged.

The incident has evoked strong responses from the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Speaking to media persons, Bihar BJP spokesperson Haribhushan Thakur Bachaul urged the Nitish Kumar government to take strict action for supporting a dreaded mafia.

“They want to become Jinnah and make another Pakistan. BJP workers are keeping an eye and such intentions are bound to fail. Bulldozer will be run on the intentions of such people. It’s just a matter of time,” said Bachaul, who is known for making controversial remarks.

He further said that supporting hooliganism in the name of a mafia is akin to promoting terrorism, and urged the government to identify such people and take strong action against them.

Nikhil Anand, the general secretary of BJP’s OBC Morcha, accused the Mahagathbandhan government in Bihar of Muslim appeasement. “Sitting in the lap of the RJD, Nitish Kumar has kept the position of home department with him. That is why Bihar has become a hub of Islamic terrorists. In Patna, slogans are being raised openly in support of thugs and hooligans like Atiq Ahmad, and the government is just sitting idle. Nitish Kumar should be ashamed.”

In a similar incident, a Congress worker in Prayagraj recently mourned Atiq’s murder and demanded India’s highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna for him. He has now been expelled from the party for six years.

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