Shobha yatra: Wary of violence, Nuh residents choose to remain indoors today

Geetanjali Gayatri

Nuh, August 27

The frightening smell of fear fills up every lane in the city and every home in the vicinity. Fingers crossed, locals are hoping tomorrow will pass off peacefully whether or not the already-disallowed shobha yatra, announced by right wing outfits, is held.

15 seers may be allowed for symbolic yatra

• Nuh SP Narender Bijarniya on Sunday said a maximum of 15 seers could be allowed to carry out a symbolic yatra

Having suffered a double whammy given the arrest of local youth and demolition of houses after the July 31 clashes during a similar shobha yatra, the locals have decided to shut themselves in their houses.

“We are living in morbid fear of what can happen if another yatra goes wrong. We paid the price for what the outsiders did. Our children are in jail, our houses have been demolished and we have nowhere to go,” says Fadri of Nalhar village. Her house of 40 years stands demolished and her extended family of 30 lives under a bamboo shed that has been propped up amidst the rubble.

The owner of the 20 “illegal” shops near the Nalhar medical college which were razed after the clashes, Nawab Sheikh says, “All these years, the shops were never seen as illegal but post-clashes, they were razed without a notice. I had papers for some while one was disputed and the matter was in court. In a matter of minutes, everything I owned was gone. Though permission for the yatra has been denied, we are still living in fear of what could happen if outsiders gain entry, create mischief and incite the locals. They conveniently run away while we pay the price.”

Members of both communities in Nuh allegedly blame the “outsiders” — Muslims from Rajasthan and some mischievous elements among the Hindu devotees who participated in the yatra from Nuh’s Nalhar Shiva temple — for the clashes. In Moradbas village from where 22 boys have been booked for violence, Asubi, a widow, claims, “The police came at 4. 30 am after the clashes, took my three sons, showed me a revolver to silence me and I haven’t heard about them since then. They had been home all day and had no role in the clashes.”

Similarly, Isra Khan’s three sons were “dragged out of bed in the wee hours” as the police allegedly forced its entry into the house. “I hope there is no repeat of July 31 because then again we will be blamed. Our innocent boys are already in police custody but our worry is that the police will pick up more boys if there is any clash tomorrow,” he adds.

A young girl in her teens, Zareen says, “My father is 62 years old and his vision is poor. He was also labelled a rioter and picked up from our house. The police should look at mobile locations and videos and let off those who are innocent. Let the guilty be punished, but the innocent should not suffer.”

In Unthka village, a group of men sitting outside a tea shop are “on duty”. “We are noting car numbers and names of strangers passing by. We cannot bear the brunt of the clashes. Also, we have decided not to venture out at all tomorrow” explains Naseeba, a former sarpanch.

Wary of a repeat, the villagers are almost in a rush to get past tomorrow even as security menstand guard every few kilometres. The minority community is not averse to a yatra passing through the area. They are worried about mischief-mongers mingling with devotees and creating trouble for them.