By Siddhant Mohan, TwoCircles.net
Patna: Miscreants looking to flare up communal tension threw powerful crackers early morning on Sunday in a Mosque in the Phulwari Sharif area of New Millat Colony, Sector-2 Patna, along with scribbling profanities on the masjid’s wall. Thankfully, no one was reported injured in the incident.
The faithful were offering the first Namaz of the day at 5 30 am, when they heard a loud explosion in the inner courtyard of the mosque. The scared people got up to see the remains of a cracker, which is banned, had been thrown inside the premises. The explosion made such a noise that people living in the area around the mosque woke up fearing the worst.
Along with the explosion, eyewitnesses said the miscreants had defiled the walls of the mosque with horrible profanities directed against the Raza Academy, the local coaching institute. The miscreants also broke the switch of the street lights in the area to ensure that no one is able to see or recognize them.
“When I rushed out after the explosion, I saw two guys run towards Birla Colony, which is situated right behind Phulwari Sharif. Raza Academy has been targeted in the past too, but in this case, it is clear that attack was on the mosque and it seems there is a bigger motive behind this attack,” said Azad, a 30-year-old who lives close to the mosque.
“Although no one was injured, this has clearly spread panic among the community,” added Mudassir Rizwan, a resident of the area.
The sub-inspector of the area, S Ekram, who is investigating the matter, said this was a clear attack to spread fear among the community, and that he was relieved to hear that no one had been injured. “We have asked the mosque officials to install CCTV cameras so that so such miscreants are identified immediately. We are investigating the matter and have told people to be careful,” he said.