Indian police register case against mosque head for hosting imam
FIR in Central Indian village sparks anger as Muslims say law on “outsiders” is being weaponized to harass communities amid Hindutva tensions
NEW DELHI, India (MNTV) — Police in India’s Madhya Pradesh state have registered a case against a mosque committee president for hosting an imam without prior police notification, in what community members say reflects growing efforts to criminalize Muslim religious practices under Hindu supremacist pressure.
The case was filed in Khandwa district against Mohammad Hanif, president of the mosque committee in Kharkala village, after he temporarily appointed Akhtar Raza, a cleric from Bihar, to lead prayers. Authorities said Hanif was booked under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) — India’s new criminal code that replaced the colonial-era Indian Penal Code. The provision penalizes disobedience of an order issued by a public servant.
According to the independent outlet Maktoob Media, Raza had been living in accommodation provided by the mosque committee while awaiting permanent confirmation.
Hanif said the committee intended to file Raza’s paperwork once his appointment was finalized. “He was on probation, and the papers were to be submitted after that decision,” Hanif explained, adding that Raza was not staying inside the mosque itself but in accommodation allocated by the committee.
Raza echoed the explanation, noting that his family had already returned to Bihar due to housing difficulties, and describing the delay as purely procedural.
Local residents, however, believe the case is less about administrative rules and more about communal polarization. Mehboob Khan, a Kharkala villager, said the police action followed tensions during recent Eid Milad-un-Nabi and Ganesh Chaturthi processions.
He alleged that Hindu nationalist groups disrupted the Muslim procession by objecting to its traditional route. “The route has always passed through Hindu areas. Nobody objected until now,” he said, pointing out that Hindu parades had also passed through Muslim lanes without incident.
Kharkala, where Hindus make up about 70 percent of the population, has long balanced fragile inter-communal relations. Residents say using laws like the “outsider” rule against Muslim clerics is part of a larger effort to surveil and intimidate minority communities.
Hindutva, a Hindu nationalist ideology associated with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, has increasingly shaped the state’s approach to religious life. Analysts argue that police and administrative powers are being repurposed to criminalize routine Muslim practices while allowing Hindu nationalist groups greater freedom.
Police officials defended their actions. Khandwa Superintendent of Police Manoj Kumar Rai said it was “compulsory” to inform authorities about outsiders staying in the district and warned that violators would face “strict action.” Two cases were opened in connection with the September religious processions, with the one against Hanif included in that framework.
Civil rights advocates say the incident is not isolated but part of a nationwide trend where Muslim religious leaders and institutions are increasingly targeted through both vigilante pressure and state-backed legal mechanisms.
For residents of Kharkala, the charges against their mosque leader reinforce fears that ordinary religious administration is being turned into grounds for criminal suspicion in Hindu-majority India.
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