A day after its supporters were stopped from entering the Capital which caused a massive traffic jam along the Delhi-Uttar Pradesh border, representatives of the Anjuman-e-Haideri announced their plans to gherao Congress offices in Uttar Pradesh and “visit” its president Sonia Gandhi's residence later this month.
At a press conference held at Karbala Ground on Tuesday afternoon, members of the Anjuman blamed the police for causing inconvenience to thousands of commuters. They also alleged that the entire State machinery was put at the disposal of Wasim Khan, the caretaker of a disputed nursery made on the Karbala land.
It was their demand of Mr. Khan’s ouster from the Karbala land which led to the protest on Monday and several intermittent ones outside Congress leader Ahmed Patel’s residence in recent times. They accuse Mr. Patel of backing Mr. Khan.
The Shah-e-Mardan shrine and the Karbala land, which is adjacent to the nursery, houses several graves which the Shia community say have been allegedly encroached by Mr. Khan, who however refutes all the charges.
Addressing journalists Maulana Kalbe Jawad Naqvi, who had come from Lucknow, said that their plan was to meet Ms. Gandhi and it was because of Mr. Patel, whom Ms. Gandhi had instructed to resolve the matter a couple of years ago, that the trouble had escalated to a level where Mr. Khan was not ready to vacate the land and was running commercial activities from there.
The Maulana’s version had a political overtone to it when he said that some Congress leaders were hell bent on driving a wedge between the Shia community and senior party leaders, including Ms. Gandhi and her two children. This, he said, was being done by hindering communication between the two sides. He also reminded those present at the press conference that Shias have a major presence in Uttar Pradesh.
The Hindu visited the “contentious” nursery which continues to be garrisoned with policemen and Rapid Action Force personnel.
Mr. Khan, who was present there, agreed that the lease granted to him expired in 2000 but said that after an arbitration and Saket court decision went against him, the Delhi High Court had granted him relief late last year.
On the Anjuman’s allegation of using the nursery for commercial activities, he said that they had brought it before the Court also and the judge had observed that “if the plants grown in the nursery are not sold, it would turn into a forest.”
Meanwhile, the Delhi Police are yet to make any arrest in the rioting case registered after the incident in which two vehicles were burnt down near the U.P. border at Ghazipur in East Delhi.
