IAMC Condemns Massacre of Innocent Villagers in Forbesganj, Bihar
Monday June 16, 2011
The Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC – http://www.iamc.com), an advocacy group dedicated to safeguarding India’s pluralist and tolerant ethos, has strongly condemned the shocking and inhumane killing of six innocent villagers, including two women and an infant, in the Forbesganj district of Bihar. IAMC has called upon the state government to ensure that the guilty are prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
On June 3, 2011, residents of the Rampur and Bhajanpur villages under Forbesganj block in Araria district came out, after the Friday Prayer, to protest against the blockade of the connecting road between the two villages for a factory. Without using any other measures to disperse the crowd, the police opened fire on the protestors. When protestors ran, they were chased all the way into their homes, where the police entered and killed them, including two women and an infant at point blank range.
“Our hearts go out to the families of the victims, and we share in their grief and feeling of betrayal”, said Shaheen Khateeb, President, IAMC. “The barbarism and lawlessness coming from those entrusted with upholding the rule of law, is symptomatic of the deeper malaise of radical sectarian ideologies having infiltrated the ranks of the police and the paramilitary”, added Mr. Khateeb.
Videos of the bodies of victims, obtained by news portal twocircles.net, show bullet marks on the head, neck, chest and abdomen, and evidence that the bullets were fired at point blank range. Moreover, the videos also show bullet marks on the walls and windows of the homes.
Although the judicial probe ordered by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, is a step in the right direction, IAMC believes preventing such horrific incidents from being repeated requires a stronger reaction from the state and central government.
The propaganda against the region launched by the BJP and ABVP, with baseless allegations of the Muslim-majority villages being a “haven for terrorists”, played a decisive role in this senseless loss of life.
Indian American Muslim Council (formerly Indian Muslim Council-USA) is the largest advocacy organization of Indian Muslims in the United States with 10 chapters across the nation. For more information please visit our new website at www.iamc.com.
RELATED LINKS:
Forbesganj Firing: Police killed women, infant at pointblank range
http://twocircles.net/2011jun06/forbesganj_firing_police_killed_women_infant_pointblank.html
Forbesganj Firing: Nitish Kumar Orders Judicial Probe
http://twocircles.net/2011jun07/forbesganj_firing_nitish_kumar_orders_judicial_probe.html
Contact:
Shaheen Khateeb
phone: 1-800-839-7270
email: info@iamc.com
Address:
6321 W Dempster St. Suite 295
Morton Grove, IL 60053
phone: 1-800-839-7270
email: info@iamc.com
