Lucknow, Aug 9 Leaders of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), indicted by the (retired) Justice M.P. Saxena Commission for their involvement in the Moradabad riots that erupted in 1980 and claimed numerous lives, have rejected their party’s role in the rampage.
Qauser Hayat Khan, national joint secretary of IUML, dismissed the findings of the probe report that has attributed responsibility for the riots to the “Muslim League”.
The violence occurred during the Eid festival.
“Yes, IUML has been accused of involvement in the riots but the reality is that the then Congress government was accountable for the events. The Saxena Commission merely documented official statements,” he said and added that a comprehensive investigation was not carried out by the Commission.
During that period, both the central and Uttar Pradesh state governments were led by the Congress party.
Khan’s clarification comes in the wake of the state government tabling the report of the one-man inquiry commission -- headed by justice (retired) M.P. Saxena -- which gives clean chit to the then local administration and blames the ‘Muslim League’ leaders for inciting violence.
Khan also called for compensation to be provided to the individuals killed in the police firing that transpired at the Eidgah on August 13, 1980.
A total of 108 cases were lodged, as per the investigation report tabled in the state Assembly on Tuesday.
“The police opened fire without provocation on innocent, unarmed Muslims who had congregated at the Eidgah to offer prayers. Contrary to the prevailing narrative, this was not a communal riot. It was a one-sided police action against Muslims that resulted in numerous fatalities, far exceeding the officially documented toll,” the IUML leader said.
“For three days following the police firing, there was no communal tension. The situation escalated when the then Union home minister, Giani Zail Singh, visited Moradabad and ordered an inquiry into the firing. It was only after this intervention that the police and local administration portrayed the incident with a communal slant.
“To fabricate the appearance of a communal riot, the local administration engineered an assault on a Muslim village. This provoked a retaliation that triggered a significant communal outbreak lasting until November 1980,” he added.
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