UP’s Auraiya Tense After Killing of Priests, Muslim Families Flee Home

Following the brutal killings of two priests of Bhayanak Nath Mahadev temple at Kuderkot by unidentified assailants, the situation in Uttar Pradesh’s Auraiya continues to be tense. As a result of the 48-hour deadline given by Cheif Minister Yogi Adityanath to apprehend the culprits, the police have launched a massive crackdown and is detaining people for questioning. It has created an atmosphere of fear, which has forced people to leave the area. Majority of Muslims living here have fled fearing that they might be framed and harassed.

The cops said that unidentified men barged into the temple on the intervening night of August 14 and 15, and attacked three priests who were sleeping in the temple’s veranda. They – said the police – were tied to cots and attacked with sharp-edged weapons. While two of them – Har Bhajan (57) and Lajja Ram (65) – could not survive the fatal attack, the third priest – Ram Sharan (56) – is severely injured and is undergoing treatment.

The incident was reported on August 15 morning when a local went to the temple to offer prayers. He saw the three priests lying in a pool of blood.    

Soon after the incident came to light, the chief minister announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each for the families of the priests, and directed police officials to crack the case within 48 hours. On expiry of the given time, law enforcement officials have sought a deadline extension into the investigation of the case. Seven police teams led by superintendent of police of Auraiya, additional director general of police (Kanpur Zone) and inspector general (Kanpur) have been formed to crack the case. The Crime Branch (Kanpur) and special police force of Auraiya district have also been roped in.     

“We have arrested five persons (all Muslims) – who have confessed to their crime – and are conducting raids to nab the rest seven accused,” a police official told Newsclick on the condition of anonymity.

“During interrogation,” said the officer, “they told us that they were agitated because the priests used to inform the police about their illegal activities of cow smuggling and slaughter operations. The arrests of their accomplices on August 14 led them to commit the crime, as they assumed it happened because the priests tipped the police off in advance”.    

When asked about the migration of the people (Muslims living in the area) because of the fear and police harassment, he said, “No migration is taking place. The suspects have been identified and will be arrested soon. No one is being harassed. The police are working to crack the case as soon as possible.”

The investigators have detained at least 20 suspects, including men and women for questioning. A majority of the suspects reportedly belong to the Quraishi community who are primarily butchers by profession.

Given the tense atmosphere in the district, police force, including the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC), have been heavily deployed in Kudarkot village to avoid any untoward incident.       

There had been violent protests in different parts of the city earlier this week that led the security forces to resort to firing tear gas shells.

“Cow slaughter is very common here. Because the place where they slaughter cows is close to the temple, the priests used to object. The police had arrested a few people on August 14 on the charges of cow slaughter and smuggling, but they were let off the same day in the evening, and the priests were murdered at night,” Rahul Tiwari, a local journalist, told Newsclick.
He also said majority of Muslim families living in the area have left their home.