All India Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind demands law against mob lynching

The All India Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind Friday expressed concern over the "growing" incidents of mob lynching targeting religious minorities and sought a special law to curb them.

In a meeting of its working committee, the organisation stressed that mere cosmetic attempts to tackle the menace "would not suffice" as it was the duty of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure the safety of minorities.

Jamiat Chief Maulana Arshad Madani, who presided over the meeting, told the media that a demand was raised to enact a special law to deal with mob lynching.

He also warned that a hugely diverse and multi-religious country like India cannot be governed by one particular ideology or religion.

The country will move on the path of progress if it follows secularism and religious neutrality, he said alleging that minorities especially Muslims were being targeted because of their religion.

Madani claimed that attempts were being made to abolish the rule of law in the country as well as undermine the judiciary.

If the supremacy of the Constitution and the rule of law is not upheld, then the country will pay a heavy price for this blunder, he said.

Everybody needs to uphold the Constitutional values and preserve the age-old ethos of religious tolerance and communal harmony, he said.

Without taking any names, Madani said some forces were trying to divide the people on communal and caste lines and spreading hatred to reap political dividends.

Recalling the July 17, 2018 Supreme Court judgment on mob lynching incidents, Madani said the apex court had directed the central government to make a special legislation for checking the menace.

However, it is unfortunate that the apex court ruling did not have any effect as mob lynching incidents have continued unabated.

Since the court ruling, as many as 55 people have been lynched and since May 26 after the Modi government was re-elected for the second term, as many as eight people were killed in such incidents, he claimed.

The working committee also deliberated upon issues like the National Register of Citizens and Babri Masjid among others.