On Sunday afternoon, Prayagraj civic authorities demolished the home of Welfare Party of India activist Javed Mohammed. Authorities have claimed that the house constructed was illegal. Afreen Fatima is the daughter of Javed Mohammed.
The house is being demolished by authorities.
Image Source: News Jani
Mr Mohammed had been arrested the day before for allegedly plotting violent protests in the city. Protests were held in several Indian cities on Friday, including Prayagraj.
Afreen Fatima came to the limelight when she became a prominent voice during the anti-CAA protests.
Afreen Fatima during the anti-CAA protest
Image Source: Fraternity Movement
Earlier on Sunday, the Prayagraj Development Authority had asked his family to vacate the premises by 11 am. Authorities have claimed that Mr Mohammed was given a show-cause notice on May 10 asking him to appear for a hearing on May 24. However, he did not comply.
Afreen Fatima’s sister, Somaiya Fatima, told reporters that the family had not been served any notice about the alleged illegality of their house. Moreover, the family’s lawyer has also questioned the legality of the demolition as the house belonged to Mr Mohammed’s wife. The lawyer also stated that the order did not mention her name but that of Javed Mohammed.
#StandWithAfreenFatima
Factual mistakes and absurdities in the demolition notice served on Javed Mohd's houseLast night at about 11 pm Allahabad police stuck a demolition notice on the house of Javed Mohd. The back dated notice was served in the name of Javed Mohd pic.twitter.com/aYUMhhmeLt
— أمينة Amina (@AminaaKausar) June 12, 2022
The police discovered several inappropriate materials during their search of the house. Weapons and objectionable posters were discovered, with pistols and cartridges among them.
During demolition, Javed's house was searched and inappropriate material including weapon and posters were recovered. List of such items is being prepared. Among the recovered weapons include .12 bore and .315 bore pistol and cartridges: Ajay Kumar, SSP Prayagraj pic.twitter.com/Y5arJLJQXl
— Piyush Rai (@Benarasiyaa) June 12, 2022
According to Somaiya Fatima, she and her mother were detained by authorities at 12:30 a.m. on Sunday. They were taken to the Civil Lines female police station in the city. She told reporters that the police were attempting to extract something controversial from them, but that nothing could be extracted. She went on to say that, despite female officers’ efforts to get them to talk, a male officer present abused her mother and that force should be used to force them to “spill the truth.”
The mother-daughter duo was released at 8 am the same day and were asked to call their family members to vacate the house. The police took them to their relatives’ homes instead of their own. She added that the family does not know the whereabouts of her father.
Stating that the eviction order is incorrect, Kamal Krishna Roy, the family’s lawyer, filed a petition in the Allahabad High Court challenging the demolition. A letter was sent to the chief justice stating that the house was registered under Parveen Fatima, the wife of Javed Mohammed. They further stated that the family did not receive a show-cause notice as mentioned in the demolition orders. Mr Roy expects an early hearing of the petition.
Several well-known and common netizens have poured their support for Afreen Fatima and her family on Twitter. Among the well-known activists, JNU Students Union President Aishe Ghosh came out in Afreen Fatima’s support. Moreover, Gurmehar Kaur, a writer and activist, has called the demolition a “state sponsored attack on its own citizen.”
Stand in unflinching solidarity with Afreen and her family. We stand against the intimidation tactics of the BJP-RSS.#StandWithAfreenFatima pic.twitter.com/yvNprnh6aS
— Aishe (ঐশী) (@aishe_ghosh) June 12, 2022
HORRIFYING! this is a state sponsored attack on its own citizen! Our own people are being attacked in broad daylight and no one bats an eye because they are Muslim. What a great shame for everyone who stays silent. #StandWithAfreenFatima https://t.co/iUXhhEv4N3
— Gurmehar Kaur (@mehartweets) June 12, 2022
At Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), a protest was undertaken by several students to show their support for Afreen Fatima. The students’ union was protesting against the ‘bulldozer’ action taken against Fatima’s father.
References: Scroll.in and Outlook India
Featured image source: Outlook India
