Muslim minors detained in a juvenile correction home in Ramnagar, Uttar Pradesh, have described inhumane treatment and anti-Muslim abuse at the hands of authorities, raising serious concerns about the bias faced by young detainees from the minority community.
The minors, arrested in connection with a stone-pelting incident in Varanasi’s Kotwa village, allege they were subjected to forced labor, derogatory slurs, and even physical assault while in custody.
A fact-finding team from the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) met the minors following their release and documented their harrowing experiences.
According to the children and their families, the police conducted a midnight raid, forcibly taking them away as if they were hardened criminals. Inside the juvenile facility, the discrimination was blatant—only Muslim children were made to clean floors and perform menial tasks.
They were mocked with Islamophobic slurs like “mullah,” “kattmullah,” and “Pakistani.”
“According to them (children), the authorities at the facility, influenced by communal bias, treated them unfairly. Only Muslim children were made to clean floors and perform menial labor. They were insulted with derogatory terms like ‘mullah’ ‘kattmullah’ and ‘Pakistani’. Additionally, at the police station, when some of the children asked to use the restroom, they were beaten, and some were even assaulted with batons,” read APCR report.
Some of them were beaten with batons when they requested to use the restroom, APCR reported.
Lawyer Shamim Nomani, who represents the children, condemned their arrest and detention, stating that the charges do not legally justify their confinement. “This is a clear violation of human rights and legal procedures,” he said.
Background
In Varanasi’s Kotwa Village, tensions escalated over the past few days, leading to an increased police (PAC) presence in the area after a few minor Muslim boys were arrested for alleged vandalism.
The incident, which occurred late on the night of March 4, reportedly involved the minors breaking streetlights with the alleged intention of stealing the bulbs and also harming the CCTV camera.
A video of the act went viral on social media, triggering a wave of concern, particularly among the Hindu families living in the area. Some of them accused the Muslim youth of attempting to incite violence against the ‘minority’ 15 Hindu families living in Kotwa village.
However, the local police swiftly refuted these claims, stating that there was no evidence to support the allegation of a targeted communal attack.
According to reports, the incident that sparked these tensions began when a video surfaced on social media, showing minor boys from the Muslim community allegedly engaged in stone-pelting near the Kotwa area. The video, which was later identified as CCTV footage from one of the local houses, was shared widely, leading to a social media uproar.
Hindu families in Kotwa, in particular, claimed that the boys were creating unrest and provoking violence against Hindu properties. However, the police dismissed these claims, focusing on the fact that the boys had targeted street bulbs and lights and not residential properties.
A case was registered after the video went viral, and the police started investigating the matter. Hindu families in the area have claimed there has been unrest since February after a dead body of a Hindu youth was found in the area. These claims of insecurity had led to CCTV cameras being installed in some homes.
Speaking to media, ACP Rohaniya Sanjiv Kumar Sharma confirmed that the CCTV footage showed the Muslim minors throwing stones at streetlights, with no indication of targeting houses or attempting to incite violence. The footage also revealed that the minors were attempting to steal the bulbs after breaking the streetlights, which pointed to the possibility of a theft rather than a planned communal disturbance. He also said that all necessary actions would be taken into the matter.
Soon after, the Lohta police arrested nine teenagers in connection with the stone-pelting incident at Abhilash Singh’s house in Kotwa village. The arrested individuals, aged between 12 and 15 years, were captured on CCTV footage during the act.
According to Lohta SHO Praveen Kumar, the police swiftly identified and apprehended all the minors. After their arrest, the teenagers were presented before the court and subsequently sent to the juvenile correction home in Ramnagar, as reported.
