Rajasthan court acquits Dargah cleric and 5 others accused of raising 'sar tan se juda'

Nishita Singh,

Rayat Bahra University, Mohali

Introduction

India’s “Unity in Diversity” serves as a beacon of inspiration for embracing differences and fostering harmony in the world. Due to the presence of multiple religions, there have been constant conflicts of beliefs and ideologies amongst the citizens of India. One such conflict is prevalent in Ajmer where a cleric of Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti shrine and five others were acquitted by a trial court of Ajmer on July 16, 2024. The accused have allegedly raised the slogan of ‘sar tan se juda’ against former Bhartiya Janta Party spokesperson, Nupur Sharma in June 2022 as her remarks on Prophet Mohammad were perceived as blasphemy. As per those Muslim mobsters along with the accused, any kind of disrespect for the Prophet was a crime and the punishment could be death penalty in some circumstances. However, this does not give them the freedom to breach the law and order of society under the guise of religion. This incident cropped up a few days prior to the beheading of Kanhayia Lal, a tailor in Udaipur. Moreover, the way it is getting normalized in India, it is important to analyze the history of the slogan, and how it crept into the country. It is also the high time to verify whether the slogan valid as per any religion or it is just a political weapon.

Chain of Events

This conflict emerged from the remark for Prophet Muhammad by former Bhartiya Janta Party spokesperson, Nupur Sharma. This remark caused furor amongst Muslims on May 27, 2022. On June 17 a peace march was organized from Nizam Gate to Dargah Bazaar against that comment. However, the accused instigated the mob by shouting slogans "Gustakhi-e-nabi ki ek hi saza, sar tan se juda, aur tan sar se juda" on a loudspeaker. For this nuisance created by the accused, Constable Jay Narayan registered a complaint in police station. The complainant also had made a video of that event on his mobile phone which he kept to himself until 25th June. But eventually the investigating officers were informed about that video, although they did not confiscate that crucial evidence. On June 28, Kanhaiya Lal was beheaded for allegedly supporting Nupur Sharma, and a video uprooted showing that Syed Gohar Chishti had visited Udaipur prior to this brutal murder and the two accused had also raised the same slogan while beheading the tailor. After the beheading, Chishti went into hiding. But finally two accused were arrested on 30th June and Chishti was also arrested from Hyderabad on July 14.

Reasons for acquittal by the Trial Court

After two years, a Trial Court in Ajmer acquitted shrine’s cleric (Syed Gohar Chishti) and 5 others accused of raising the beheading slogan. It was observed by the court that the incident took place on 17th June whereas the complaint was filed on 25th June without mentioning any reasons for such delay. Along with this all the eyewitnesses were found to be police officers whence there was a large crowd of people during this event. The story presented in the court was considered suspicious. The only crucial evidence was mobile phone of Jay Narayan which was also not confiscated, and no action was taken by the investigating officers. In 2023, the complainant’s mobile phone was claimed to be broken which further added to the suspicion of court that how such crucial evidence was not in the custody of police department. The entire incident of 17th June was recorded in the CCTV camera of Anjuman Yadgar Committee. A DVR (digital video recorder) of that meeting was presented as evidence in the court, but it was found that the DVR (digital video recorder) was not certified from there. Moreover, there was no information about the witness who collected and the witness who provided DVR from dargah. Furthermore, there was no sound in the DVR, due to which Chishti’s voice in that event cannot be believed. Since there was no strong evidence therefore the trial court acquitted Chishti and 5 the others accused of raising the slogan of “sar tan se juda”. The India judiciary works on the maxim that “Let a hundred guilty be acquitted, but one innocent should not be convicted”. In the above case also after numerous trials the court could not establish any strong evidence against the accused hence they were acquitted.

Conclusion

Thus, it can be concluded that communalism is a double-edged sword. On one hand, communalism can foster a sense of belonging, identity, and solidarity amongst individuals who share common beliefs. However, on the other hand, it can also lead to division, conflict, and discrimination. When taken to extremes, it can fuel intolerance, prejudice, and violence towards those who belong to different communities or hold different beliefs. This can result in social unrest, polarization, and even communal riots, which can have devastating consequences for individuals and society as a whole. Hence, it is the responsibility of the judicial system of a country to interpret and apply laws and settle disputes rationally without any bias or prejudices.

References

1. Zahack Tanvir, 'Sar Tan Se Juda': India Should Be Wary of Slogan's Growing Normalisation, News 18, (July 21, 2024, 12:35 PM), https://www.news18.com/news/opinion/sar-tan-se-juda-india-should-bewary-of-slogans-growing-normalisation-5846551.html ,

2. Sparsh Upadhyaya, 'Sar Tan Se Juda' Case, Live Law, (July 21, 2024, 12:38 PM), https://www.livelaw.in/news-updates/sar-tan-se-juda-ajmer-courtdargah-khadim-nupur-sharma-kanhaiya-lal-murder-provocation-kill-acquitsdargah-cleric-

263783#:~:text=Acquitting%20a%20dargah%20cleric%20(Syed,accused%20 threatening%20or%20inciting%20harm 

3. India TV, https://www.indiatvnews.com/rajasthan/sar-tan-se-juda-sloganhow-police-s-role-came-under-scanner-after-ajmer-dargah-khadim-wasacquitted-updates-2024-07-19-942597  (last visited July 21, 2024)