By Kashif-ul-Huda, TwoCircles.net,
East Delhi, Delhi: On Sunday March 23rd, residents of Okhla woke up to the news of disappearance of four Muslim youths in Jaipur and two in Delhi. These students were picked up by a group of people not wearing any uniform or carrying any warrants for arrest. Soon it came to be known that people who kidnapped these students were members of Delhi Police Special Cell.
The news evoked the memory of Batla House encounter of 2008 in which two Muslim youths and a police inspector was killed which many people of the area and all fact-finding reports have labeled as “fake” or staged.
Within hours of the news that students have gone missing, a crowd led by Amanutulah Khan of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) assembled at Shaheen Bagh in Okhla blocking the road and demanding immediate release of those arrested. Later that night, the two who were picked up from Delhi were released.
The arrest and finally the release of the two have confirmed to the Muslims that they are right in their thinking that their youths are being harassed in the name of terrorism. “If they were really terrorists or had any link to terrorism then why were they released,” asks Neyaz Farooquee who is writing a book on Batla House Encounter. “Show us the evidence of terrorism, if not to us then at least in the court,” said Farooquee pointing to the acquittals of Muslims years later, he added, “redressal mechanism is not working and therefore the frustration of Muslims has begin to spill over to the streets.”
Batla House Encounter had a political impact as well. Emergence of Rashtriya Ulama Council, a political party led by Muslim Ulema was in direct response to targeting of Azamagarh by media and police after the Batla House incident. Anger against Congress (ruling party in both Delhi and Centre at the time of the encounter) was prominent among Muslims of this constituency. Parvez Hashmi was barely able to win this seat in Delhi Assembly election. Asif Mohammad Khan won the next election on RJD ticket but then switched over to Congress and still managed to win Okhla assembly seat inspite of an AAP wave in Delhi.
Illegal detention and then false accusation of terrorism on Muslim youth is a real issue among Muslims. This encounter will be in the mind of the Muslims of not only this constituency but Muslims in states as far away as Bihar and Maharashtra. But their options unfortunately are limited. Their votes directly or indirectly end up supporting the party that they blame for putting them under this condition. But if the latest Shaheen Bagh episode is any indication, the fight against Muslim witch-hunting is going to be a political one.