'Humanity Only For Stone Pelters?' Asks Gujarat Minister On Garba Flogging

Amid a row over an incident in which some police personnel publicly flogged a few Muslim men accused of stone-pelting in Gujarat, state minister Harsh Sanghavi has asked whether humanity existed only for the stone-pelters and if there were no human rights for those hit by stones.

The police had flogged the minority community members after they allegedly hurled stones at garba dance participants in Kheda district earlier this week. Videos of some police personnel flogging them with a baton had surfaced on social media, after which a probe was ordered into the incident.

The police on Friday arrested five more persons for their alleged involvement in the stone-pelting incident, taking the number of those held so far in the case to 18. The case is now also being investigated from the angle of criminal conspiracy, a police official said.

Mr Sanghavi, while speaking at an event held here on Friday, said, "I do not understand whether humanity is only for those pelting stones? Aren't there any human rights for those children and women who are hit by stones on their heads? Shouldn't they have human rights?" The Minister of State for Home also asked the gathering if garba should not be performed by people at public places.

"Do those pelting stones have a religion? Shouldn't there be human rights for those hit by stones? Then why every time the issue of human rights is raised in favour of those hurling stones? This is a point to be considered," he said.

Meanwhile, Dhruvraj Chudasama, inspector of Special Operations Group (SOG) investigating the case, said the police are probing the case from criminal conspiracy angle on the part of the minority community.

In the first information report (FIR) registered in this connection, which mentions the names of 43 persons, the police have added Indian Penal Code (IPC) section 120 (B) that pertains to criminal conspiracy, he said.

The five accused held on Friday were remanded in judicial custody by a local court on Saturday.

"There are 43 accused who have been identified in the FIR, out of which 18 have been arrested so far as we have held five more accused in the case," Mr Chudasama said.

"We have added 120 (B) of IPC in the FIR. The accused persons had conspired together to ensure that the Garba event was not held at the given place in the village. The accused had pre-planned this and made preparations for the same," he said.

Meanwhile, a group of lawyers from the minority community had on Friday submitted a memorandum to the Superintendent of Police of Kheda district, seeking impartial investigation in the entire incident.

They alleged conspiracy on the part of the sarpanch of Undhela village for deliberately instigating members of the Muslim community by organising Garba near a mosque.

As per the memorandum, the FIR against the Muslim members of the community has named "innocent" people as accused.

The incident of flogging was carried out by the local crime branch officials under the pressure of local political leaders and the sarpanch. Videos of the incident were shared on social media as part of the conspiracy, alleged the lawyers, under the banner 'All India Lawyers Council', in their memorandum.

Seven persons, including a policeman, were injured after a mob comprising members of the Muslim community allegedly hurled stones at the Garba dance event organised as part of Navratri celebrations at Undhela on Monday night. The attackers objected to the event being organised near a mosque.

The next day, videos surfaced purportedly showing police personnel publicly flogging three of the 13 accused arrested in the stone pelting case with a baton by holding them against an electric pole at an intersection in the village.

Gujarat Director General of Police (DGP) Ashish Bhatia has ordered the probe into the incident of flogging. 

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)