On 8th February 2024, the administration team which went to Malik Colony in Banbhoolpura in Uttarakhand to demolish an illegal madrasa and mosque came under brutal attack by Islamist mob. The mob pelted stones at the officials, police personnel, and journalists alike while bullets were also fired. The mob also set fire to the police station, and a petrol pump, and attempted to burn police officers alive. Female police officers had to run to save their lives. They were allegedly misbehaved and their clothes were torn.
The mob didn’t spare the Journalists either. Local journalists shared their ordeal alleging that the Islamist extremist mob was singling out Hindus among administration officials, police personnel, and journalists, and allegedly hatched a conspiracy to kill them.
Haldwani’s Congress leader Gabbar Valmiki told OpIndia that sanitation workers were also attacked the next day at the same place where riots erupted on 8th February. He firmly supported the imposition of the NSA (National Security Act) on those who attacked the police, stating that stones were collected for the attacks from the railway lines. Gabbar Valmiki, residing in Ward No. 13 of Jawahar Nagar, stated that going against the administration was a well-planned conspiracy.
Valmiki further informed OpIndia that all preparations for the attack were made in advance. Stones were also hurled at Municipal Corporation workers on Monday (February 12th, 2024). Gabbar Valmiki is the youth secretary of the district unit of the Congress. He referred to Abdul Malik as the wealthiest man in Haldwani. He asserted that the NSA should be imposed on the attackers, adding that if the police had not been present, there would have been a massacre. Gabbar Valmiki mentioned that sharp stones were thrown from rooftops, adding that the stones thrown by those below would not be able to reach the top.
OpIndia also spoke to another sanitation worker, Mithun Valmiki. He mentioned that he was driving the municipal corporation vehicle with 20-25 sanitation workers when they encountered a crowd of women who came forward and began arguing with the police. Subsequently, children were pushed forward. He continued by saying that suddenly, stone pelting began, and the vehicle was surrounded, forcing him to get out and run to save himself. In the ensuing chaos, Mithun Valmiki’s feet got stuck in wires laid out by the mob, and then bricks were pelted at him.
However, Valmiki managed to escape somehow. He mentioned that he has a wife and two sons, and neither of his parents are alive. He added that if he hadn’t run away, he wouldn’t have been able to save himself from danger. He noted that the rioters had iron rods in their hands, and even the police officers were running to save their lives. Sanitation worker Mithun Valmiki further told OpIndia that from where he was, he could hear the rioters shouting ‘Kill them, drive them away.’ He added that there was a conspiracy to burn them alive. The government is taking care of his treatment as his foot is broken. However, he won’t be able to rejoin his job for at least a month or two.
Mithun Valmiki recounted that after fleeing and reaching home, he felt the pain. He mentioned that the attackers included children, vehicles were set on fire, and government property was burnt. He shared that if he had died, nobody would look after his family, so he wouldn’t go back to work there again.
Another sanitation worker from the Dalit community, Manoj Valmiki, mentioned that they had gone there on behalf of the municipality. While they were there, officers were trying to explain things to the protesting women, but as they were returning, the mob began pelting stones from all sides.
Manoj’s hand was injured due to the stone pelting by the Islamist mob. Manoj Valmiki told OpIndia that no one from the other side was trying to stop the rioters. His treatment is also being done at government expense. He noted that there is not a single employee of the police and municipal corporation who wasn’t injured. He has a 15-year-old son and a daughter, and they don’t even have their own house. Meanwhile, encroachers are illegally constructing houses, and when action is taken against them, they resort to rioting.
Manoj Valmiki said that Hanuman Ji saved him. He mentioned that several stones were pelted at them, and even things like flowerpots were also thrown. He added that he pleaded with Hanuman Ji to save him and then somehow he found strength within himself, and he ran straight to his Valmiki locality. His wife was in a terrible state and cried profusely. A JCB was clearing the road ahead of the sanitation workers, otherwise, many people could have died after getting stuck in the sharp barbed wires.
Another Dalit employee of the Municipal Corporation, Sagar Sonkar, also sustained injuries. He said that he was present at the spot during the riot and he feared that he would die. He had become unconscious. He told OpIndia that it seemed that this conspiracy was in the works for 6 months. According to Sagar Sonkar, he was bleeding continuously. It took him 7-8 hours to reach home because stones were being thrown from all sides wherever he went. He added that people from the other community didn’t even try to stop the stone-pelters. He mentioned that if he hadn’t run, he would have been killed.