Three Kashmiri traders assaulted in Jharkhand, allegedly forced to chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’
The police have arrested three suspects.
Three Kashmiri traders in Jharkhand’s Ranchi city on Saturday were assaulted and allegedly forced to chant “Jai Shri Ram” and “Pakistan murdabad” by some miscreants, The Indian Express reported.
The police have arrested three suspects in the case. The officers said that this was the second such incident against Kashmiri traders in two weeks in Ranchi.
“We have formed a team to investigate why two similar incidents have occurred against Kashmiri people in the city,” said Ranchi Senior Superintendent of Police Surendra Jha.
The three suspects were arrested based on a complaint by Rizwan Ahmad Wani, who sells winter clothing in Ranchi, The Indian Express reported.
According to his complaint, a group of 25 persons gathered around him and his two friends – who are also Kashmiri – when they were on their way to Ranchi’s Hamru area. The group of miscreants allegedly asked them to shout “Jai Shri Ram” and “Pakistan murdabad”.
“I was attacked on my head by a rod,” Wani said, “I was wearing a helmet and it broke into pieces. My friends were wounded, too, and my bike was damaged. The mob also looted our belongings.”
Ranchi’s Deputy Superintendent of Police Prabhat Ranjan said that the allegations about the slogans are yet to be established, according to the Hindustan Times. Nonetheless, he added that the police were identifying Kashmiri traders in Ranchi so that the officers could provide them with better security.
“We have sought details of all such men staying here and areas where they are practising their trade so that we can devise some mechanism for their safety,” Ranjan said. “Be it increasing security or patrolling, we will take corrective measures accordingly.”