By Mohd. Ismail Khan, TwoCircles.net,
Hyderabad: The old city area of the Andhra Pradesh capital is yet another time witnessing tense moments as the Milad-un-Nabi (birthday of the Prophet) celebrations are round the corner. Tensions prevailed in the Muslim dominated old city area when the local TDP Corporator Raja Singh, known well for his right wing activities, announced that he will take out a procession to protest against the alleged police order banning ringing of the bell in Bhagyalaxmi temple adjacent to historic Charminar. He alleged that police is trying to appease Muslims in the old city area on the occasion of Milad-un-Nabi by banning the bells during the ‘Aarati’ time.
The rumor that police were preventing the devout from ringing the bell spread like a wild fire after a Telugu newspaper published a picture of two women constables holding the bells in the temple in an attempt to prevent the devotees from ringing them during ‘Aarati’ time. But according to the police that picture was published five days ago and the Police suspect that the picture was not shot recently, as one of the constables in it was currently attached to Nampally police station and not old city. Police showed a firm denial regarding the issue of such kind of order, “There is no such order prohibiting ringing of bell. Many devotees did ring the bell during Harati time. These reports are baseless,” the South zone DCP, Manish Kumar Sinha, said while speaking to the journalists.
Anticipating trouble, the police moved in and took the Corporator into preventive custody and didn’t allow him to take out rally. But the much damage was already done by then, many Hindu youths assembled at the Bhagyalakshmi temple with the bells at the Aarati pooja time. Then the commissioner of police A.K Khan reached the Charminar police station and monitored the whole situation.
But this is not the end of the problems for the police. Tempers are running high in the Muslim community of old city after the rumors spread about alleged desecration of the Milad-un-Nabi flags by the police, and the role played in preventing the tying of banners and flags for Milad-un-Nabi festival, which police have also denied firmly. But police have appealed to the organizers and the elders of the community to restrict the dates of the celebration and even asked to confine decorations to February 4, 5 and 6. Police asked them to give the details of the meeting venues, routes of processions and other celebrations to provide adequate security and ensure minimum traffic chaos.
Earlier police commissioners of Hyderabad have called the meeting of the Muslim religious stalwarts of the city and appealed to them to restrict the community to indulge in any communal activities during the Milad celebrations. Police is in no mood to take any chances keeping in view the bitter violence that erupted after the festival two years ago which resulted in one month curfew in the city.