Representative image.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Nearly a month since communal clashes rocked Haryana's Nuh, Muslims who live and work in Gurugram are still enduring threats.
Over the past few days, posters targeting Muslims inhabiting a slum in Sector 69A in Gurugram have come up, threatening them to leave the area.
Additionally, posters targeting Muslim women have also surfaced after a recent incident, where a mazar was deliberately set ablaze in a village in Gurugram. This incident was a result of heightened tensions following communal clashes in the nearby Nuh district.
The posters, which asked the slum residents to leave their homes, read, "Residents of the slum... you must evacuate your homes before August 28 and depart... otherwise, there might be negative repercussions. To preserve your dignity... you have 2 days..."
While local police have taken down the posters and carried out investigations, there is still panic and fear within the community. "We have eliminated the posters and commenced an inquiry," stated Assistant Commissioner of Police Manoj Kumar in a conversation with NDTV.
He also stated that the slums are considered 'unauthorised'.
However, so far, no arrests have been made and the people responsible for the incident have not been identified by the authorities.
While the slum might have been constructed without proper authorisation, its residents, who have been living there for years, including many women who work as domestic helpers in nearby apartments, feel threatened and afraid in light of the posters that have appeared.
"We are more afraid for our children. When my husband and I go to work... the children are here alone. We had gone to the village after the riots but now, these posters have come up," one woman told NDTV, while another said, "We are scared... have lived here for many years."
The two women, fearing the worst if their identities were to be made public, spoke to the publication on condition of anonymity.
Following the July violence in Nuh, where six individuals lost their lives, there has been persistent tension in the area and neighbouring Gurugram, especially of late, as there have been reports of attacks targeting Muslim shop owners.
This fear has prompted numerous families to leave the area.
Those who still remain, such as the residents of Sector 69A, are still grappling with the fallout of an ugly communal spat.