Muslim residents of several villages in Maharashtra’s Pune district have been forced to flee their homes and shut businesses in the past two months amid boycott calls by “majoritarian forces”, two human rights organisations have alleged.

In a letter to the Pune divisional commissioner on June 30, the People’s Union for Civil Liberties and the Association for Protection of Civil Rights also urged authorities to act against those creating a “sense of insecurity” in Paud, Pirangut, Kolvan, Suatarwadi and the surrounding villages of Mulsi taluk.

The two groups had conducted a fact-finding exercise in the district on July 2 after reports emerged that residents of the villages were told “not to allow any Muslim to work or employ him/her in any business or profession or allow them to stay as a tenant”.

This came after a Muslim boy allegedly desecrated an idol of the Hindu deity Annapurna in Paud village on May 2, according to the letter.

“Some residents of the village beat him up and handed him over to the local police,” it said, adding that a case was registered and the boy was arrested.

Following this, political parties, including the Bharatiya Janata Party, organised protests condemning the incident. The situation was brought under control by the police, the letter said, adding that a few local leaders and activists also made efforts later to settle the matter.

However, placards and boards displaying notices banning Muslims from outside the village from entering the area began appearing in public places soon after, said the rights groups.

They alleged that Muslim shopkeepers, traders and vendors were also forced to close their businesses, compelling a few establishments dealing in scrap material to shut down and leave the villages.

“Moreover, we are told that with the ‘cooperation’ of local police, the identity proofs are checked and verified to ensure that no Muslim other than permanent/local Muslim resident be allowed to live in the village,” the human rights groups claimed.

They added: “Because of such terrifying, chilling atmosphere, many Muslim persons/families have been forced to leave their respective villages and to seek temporary shelter to some other place – many have been made to go back to their native places in other states.”

A few Hindus in the area also told the human rights groups that they had been told not to help anybody from the Muslim community, claimed the letter. “This is certainly undesirable and affecting peace and harmony in the villages.”

It further claimed that similar instances of a “boycott call” of the Muslim community were seen in Pune city in the past three months. Residents have been urged to boycott businesses owned by Muslims and not to avail any service from them, it added.

Such instances and messages circulating online have been brought to the notice of the police, the letter said. “However, despite that, such appeals, affecting the harmony in society, are being made openly and intermittently and as if with impunity,” it added.

In their letter, the People’s Union for Civil Liberties and the Association for Protection of Civil Liberties urged the divisional commissioner to conduct an inquiry into the matter and take action to restore normalcy in the villages.

They also asked the authorities to remove the notices calling for a boycott of Muslims.

The groups asked the divisional commissioner to “identify those anti-social elements who have been actively and deliberately threatening people due to their deep-rooted prejudices or for political reasons and to take necessary preventive action against them”.

They also sought instructions to the police to identify those circulating such “hate messages” and “boycott calls”.