RAIPUR: A visit by Salim Raj, Chairperson of the Chhattisgarh State Waqf Board, to endorse the reinstatement of a person aligned with the BJP as the Jama Masjid Mutawalli (caretaker of a mosque) in Mahasamund district sparked uproar and violent clashes between two groups within the Muslim community.
The confrontation erupted while Raj was addressing a press conference at the Mahasamund circuit house in support of the Waqf Amendment Bill 2024. During the conference, a group of people interrupted the proceedings, leading to heated exchanges and a physical altercation between supporters of the Congress and the BJP.
The rival groups attacked each other with knives, sticks, and stones, leaving nearly half a dozen people injured. The injured were subsequently taken to a local hospital for treatment.
“A group of people was seen protesting against the process of reinstating the person owing allegiance to BJP as Mutawalli of a Jama Masjid (main mosque). The present Mutawalli, with the support of Congress members, had occupied the given position for the past several years. Now our government has returned to Chhattisgarh, so the person who deserved the place of the Mutawalli should acquire it,” Raj told this newspaper.
Local Congress leaders, however, countered Raj’s claims, describing his statements as 'wrong and politically motivated'.
The scuffle between the two groups soon escalated into violence, with individuals armed with iron rods and knives chasing and attacking each other near the national highway adjacent to the circuit house.
The Kotwali police have registered a cross FIR based on complaints filed by both groups.
Controversy first emerged in November when Salim Raj issued a circular instructing Mutawallis of all mosques to have sermons preached during Friday (Juma) afternoon prayers vetted by his office before being delivered to congregations.