4 men arrested for thrashing Muslim youth for 'not' chanting Jai Shri Ram in Godhra

Four men were arrested by the Godhra police for allegedly assaulting three Muslim youth for not chanting “Jai Shri Ram” slogan. The police have also caught hold of two minors in connection with the case. Victims told the media that they were stopped by the accused on the road and were asked to chant Jai Sri Ram. When they refused to do so, the six people started beating them, according to news agency ANI.

The Muslim youth were admitted to a hospital and are undergoing treatment. Superintendent of Police (Panchmahal) Leena Patil told the media that prima facie the case appears to be of a scuffle between two groups of youngsters.

"We have registered a case under IPC section 324. As per our investigation, this is just a case of a scuffle. In the video, there is no exchange of words between them before the scuffle takes place," ANI quoted Patil as saying.

The officer also revealed that the police viewed video footage prior to the incident which showed a verbal scuffle between the two groups.

"We are still investigating but so far nothing of such sort has been revealed," she added.

On July 30, a 17-year-old boy, who was allegedly set on fire in Uttar Pradesh's Chandauli district two days ago for not chanting Jai Shri Ram, succumbed to his injuries.

Mohammad Khalid, a resident of Saiyad Raja town, around 350 km southeast of Lucknow, had alleged that he was kidnapped on July 28 by four men, who poured kerosene and set him set on fire for not chanting Jai Shri Ram, a charge denied by the police.

Khalid, who sustained nearly 50 per cent burn injuries, was admitted to a nearby hospital and then referred to government hospital in Varanasi. He died in the morning, the police said.

The deceased's father also alleged that his son was set afire for not chanting 'Jai Shri Ram.

Chandauli Superintendent of Police Santosh Kumar Singh, however, had denied the allegation and said the teenager changed his statements three times.

On July 19, in the Aurangabad neighbourhood of Muzaffarnagar, a mob of at least 10 men attacked 27-year-old Imran Ismail Patel, a waiter at a hotel who was returning home from work on his motorcycle. The men allegedly took away the keys to Patel’s motorbike and forced him to chant Jai Shri Ram.

On July 21, less than 5 km away at Azad Chowk, four men, now arrested, threatened 23-year-old Sheikh Amer and his 26-year-old friend Sheikh Naser with a beating, if they did not chant Jai Shri Ram. They did but were beaten anyway, Amer said in a first information report filed with the CIDCO police station the next day.