Did ‘Sanghs’ Attack Lucknow Imam? No, It Was a Robbery Gone Wrong

The circle officer of Alambagh police station denied that the accused had any links with the RSS or Bajrang Dal.

CLAIM

A set of images is circulating on social media with the claim that the Imam of a mosque located on Lucknow’s Jail Road was attacked by a group of ‘sanghs’ and ‘bajrangs’.

The claim along with the images reads: “11 बजे रात में लखनऊ में जेल रोड पर बनी मस्जिद के इमाम हाफ़िज़ अदनान साहब पर नीच, कायर संघियों-बजरंगियों ने तलवार से जानलेवा हमला किया अल्लाह ताआला ने हिफ़ाज़त फ़रमाई” (Translated: At 11 pm, Imam Hafiz Adnan of Lucknow’s Jail Road mosque was attacked by coward Sanghs-Bajrangs with the use of a sharp weapons.)

The images show an injured man with bloodstains on his clothes. Several social media users have shared the images of Facebook and Twitter with the same claim.

The images shared by Facebook page of ‘Peace Party Lucknow Mohammad irfan’ had received engagement of over 3,900 shares at the time of publishing this article.

The archived version of the posts can be viewed here, here, and here.

TRUE OR FALSE?

The claim along with the images is false. Firstly, while the man seen in the images is an Imam of a mosque, he is Maulana Mukim and not Hafiz Adnan as claimed. Secondly, Lal Pratap Singh, circle officer of Lucknow’s Alambagh police station, told The Quint that there is no communal angle to the incident.

The official further denied any links with the ‘Sangh’ or ‘Bajrang’ – Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and Bajrang Dal.

WHAT WE FOUND OUT

Lal Pratap Singh, Circle Officer of Alambagh police station, told The Quint that the incident happened on 28 October, when a man named Suraj tried to enter Maulana Mukim’s house with intent to rob. However, he didn’t succeed, Singh said.

The official further said that Mukim, who is indeed the Imam of a mosque located on Lucknow’s Jail Road, had seen only one person who attacked him and not a group of people, as claimed in the posts. He denied that there was a communal angle here.

“There is no communal angle to the incident. It was an act of robbery and Suraj, who is the accused in this case, is mentally ill. Also, he is not affiliated to any political party, neither is he a Sanghi or a Bajrangi.”

Lal Pratap Singh, Circle Officer, Alambagh Police Station

The police official also informed us that the accused, Suraj, has been arrested.

Further, Maulana Mukim himself confirmed to The Quint that the incident took place between 11 pm- 11:15 pm, and that he had only seen one person. He did say that he was attacked with a sharp weapon.

Speaking to The Quint, Anil Kumar Saini, a local journalist in Lucknow in the know of the incident, also denied any communal angle.

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