Muslim mob launches pre-planned attack amid chants of Allahu Akbar, let passengers go after the driver told them he was a Muslim

Case ID : e97a5b9 | Location : Junagadh, Gujarat, India | Date of Incident : Thu, 15 June, 2023

Case ID : e97a5b9

Junagadh, Gujarat, India

15 June, 2023

Muslim mob launches pre-planned attack amid chants of Allahu Akbar, let passengers go after the driver told them he was a Muslim

Attack not resulting in death

Attacked for Hindu identity

Case Summary

Violence erupted in Junagadh following a notice sent by the Municipal Corporation to an illegal Dargah. An aggressive Islamist mob raised slogans of ‘Allahu Akbar’ and damaged government and private vehicles parked on the road by throwing stones and setting them on fire. As per the FIR copy registered in the case, the agitated Muslim mob raised slogans of ‘Nara-e-Takbir, Allahu Akbar’ and also said ‘burn everything’, ‘police ko maro (hit the police)’, ‘Koi Jinda Nahi Bachna Chahiye (no one shall be spared alive)’. Some of the Muslims could also be heard saying, “If we kill the police, no one will come our way.” The mob then began pelting stones at the police vans and also attacked some of the private vehicles. During the chaos, an ST Bus travelling from Junagadh to Vijaynagar became a target. As the bus reached Majewadi Gate, approximately 500 individuals began pelting it with stones, causing extensive damage to the windows. The mob attempted to set the bus on fire and trapped passengers inside. Among the injured were the bus driver, conductor, and a senior citizen, who were later hospitalized. Reportedly, the ST bus which was targeted during violence was being driven by a driver named Asif. The mob initially targeted the bus and closed its door from outside to set it on fire. The driver told the media that despite repeated requests, the mob did not listen to him. But the bus was allowed to disembark after the driver told the mob that his name was Asif.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

In several cases, Hindus are attacked merely for their Hindu identity without any perceived provocation. A classic example of this category of religiously motivated hate crime is a murder in 2016. 7 ISIS terrorists were convicted for shooting a school principal in Kanpur because they got ‘triggered’ seeing the Kalava on his wrist and tilak that he had put. In this, the Hindu victim had offered no provocation except for his Hindu religious identity. The motivation for the murder was purely religious, driven by religious supremacy. Such cases where Hindus are targeted merely for their religious identity would be documented as a hate crime under this category. In this case, the Muslim mob launched an attack on police personnel after the Municipal Corporation sent a notice to an illegal Dargah in the area. Some torched motorcycles parked near the dargah and also pelted stones at vehicles and pedestrians passing by. Besides, the mob also shouted Islamic slogans while pelting stones at an ST bus. Though here the prime target of the mob was the police personnel, this case has been included in the Hindu hate tracker as details of the case reveal that the Muslim mob attacked an ST bus and only let go of the passengers when the driver confirmed that he was a Muslim. This implies that the Muslim perpetrators primarily intended to attack only Hindus, which is why they let the bus disembark when the driver—a fellow Muslim—disclosed his faith to them. Since intrinsic animosity towards Hindus became the motivating factor of the crime, this case has been documented as a religiously motivated hate crime in this tracker.