UP imam attacked after refusing to chant Jai Shri Ram; police deny communal angle

A local imam from Bulakghari village in the Lodha block of Aligarh district, Uttar Pradesh, was brutally assaulted on Saturday, September 20, with the attackers allegedly forcing him to chant “Jai Shri Ram.”

According to local reports, Imam Mustakeem was targeted for having a beard and wearing a skull cap when he was on his bicycle during a scuffle between some kids and a man named Jishan.

A local imam from Bulakghari village in the Lodha block of Aligarh district, Uttar Pradesh, was brutally assaulted on Saturday, September 20, with the attackers allegedly forcing him to chant religeous slogans.

Imam Mustakeem was targeted for having a beard and wearing a skull… pic.twitter.com/8HHTg06FN8

— The Siasat Daily (@TheSiasatDaily) September 21, 2025

Police were immediately called in for inspection while both parties, who were injured, were taken to the hospital for treatment. Aligarh city superintendent of police, Mrigank Shekhar Pathak said, “Upon investigation, it was revealed that it is a normal case of simple assault. There is no religious angle to the case nor was anyone forced to chant religious slogans.”

थाना लोधा- सोशल मीडिया के माध्यम से एक प्रकरण संज्ञान में आया है, जिसमें एक व्यक्ति द्वारा बताया जा रहा है कि उसे कुछ धार्मिक नारे लगाने को मजबूर किया गया था और उसके साथ मारपीट की गई थी, इस संबंध में अवगत कराना है कि कल दि0 20.09.2025 को थाना लोधा में ग्राम बुलाकगढ़ी अन्तर्गत… pic.twitter.com/w6C66VHg67

— ALIGARH POLICE (@aligarhpolice) September 21, 2025

However, the victim has alleged that he was targeted for refusing to chant religious slogans. “For the past few days, some boys had been bothering me,” he said.

“They stopped my bicycle and asked me to say ‘Jai Shri Ram.’ When I refused, they took out sticks and beat me for nearly half an hour to two hours. They wouldn’t let me get up and said, ‘Yahi dafnado’ (Bury him here).”

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When asked whether he had previously reported the harassment to the police, he said he decided against it, so that the situation would never escalate.

Despite the Imam’s statement, local police have maintained that the incident was not a communally motivated hate crime as investigations are ongoing.

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