Imam killed after Hindu mob torch, open fire at mosque in India's Gurugram
The violence erupted on Monday after a Hindu religious procession passed through the Muslim-dominated Nuh district, the officials said.
A mosque was torched and 60 people injured in the violence. / Photo: Reuters Archive
An imam has been killed after a Hindu mob torched a mosque in India’s Gurugram city a day after communal violence in nearby neighbouring Nuh district in northern Haryana state, according to Indian news outlets.
The death toll from the violence now stands at five.
Police have identified the Imam as Maulana Saad,19, who led prayers at the Anjuman Jama mosque located in Sector 57 in Gurugram, a city of 1.2 million.
The violence erupted on Monday after a Hindu religious procession passed through the Muslim-dominated Nuh district, the officials said. By evening, the violence had spilt over into neighbouring Gurugram.
Officials from the local administration in Nuh said they were investigating the cause of the standoff.
Local government officials from Nuh and Gurugram met with representatives of the Hindu and Muslim communities on Tuesday to appeal for calm.
60 people injured
"The procession was meant to move from one temple to another but clashes broke out between two groups on the way, which resulted in the death of four people," Krishan Kumar, spokesperson of Nuh police, said.
He said two of the dead were members of the home guard, a voluntary force that helps police control civil disturbances.
Another 60 people, including 10 police personnel, were injured in the clashes, local government officials said.
Prohibitory orders had already been issued for Gurugram after some cars were set on fire on Monday evening, and schools and colleges had been directed to remain closed on Tuesday.
"The attackers (who torched the mosque) have been identified and several of them have been rounded up," Gurugram Police said in a statement on Tuesday, adding that security around places of worship had also been tightened.
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, in a post on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter, also condemned the incident in Nuh, where curfew orders have been imposed, the internet shut off, and additional security forces deployed.
Copyright © 2024 TRT World.