Ten people have been booked for rioting and criminal intimidation over the Gurugram mosque attack
A large mob barged into a mosque at a village in Gurugram on Wednesday night, ransacked it and assaulted and threatened people who were praying inside. Ten people have been charged but no one has been arrested till now.
According to a police complaint by Subedar Najar Mohammad, trouble started that morning when a mob, reportedly led by Rajesh Chauhan (Babu), Anil Bhadoria and Sanjay Vyas, surrounded the mosque and entered the prayer hall where they threatened the devotees with expulsion from the village.
"In the night again, when we were praying inside the prayer hall at the mosque, the mob returned and assaulted those praying and even locked the prayer hall. They threatened to kill us," Mohammad said in his complaint, according to the police. By the time police reached, the accused had fled.
The village has only four houses belonging to Muslim families, the FIR said.
The police say peace has been restored in the village and security around the mosque has been tightened.
Local residents said there was tension in the village after some people claimed the mosque was being expanded to cover more land on the pretext of its renovation. However, Muslim residents refuted such claims, saying the mosque was built on their own land. The village Sarpanch said those accusing the Muslims of encroachment were behind the violence.
The police are looking for clues from the mobile phone found at the spot. The phone belonged to someone who was part of the mob, officials said.
Rajesh Chauhan, Anil Bhadoria, Sanjay Vyas and several others have been charged with rioting, trying to cause religious strife and unlawful assembly.
"According to the complaint, an FIR has been registered and we are verifying the facts. Action will be taken according to the law," said Gajender Singh, the investigating officer.