The US State Department’s Spokesperson Matthew Miller has reacted to the communal violence in India by urging parties for maintaining calmness and peace amid ongoing religious clashes and incidents of violence between Hindu and Muslims in the Haryana state of India.
Amid the ongoing religious clashes with incidents of communal violence in the Nuh district of Haryana that broke out on 31st July 2024, Monday and its spread to other surrounding areas of Palwal, Faridabad and Gurugram, areas that are close to Delhi, The US State Department reacted to the communal violence and communal clashes during a State Department briefing on Wednesday.
US spokesperson Matthew Miller reiterated the call for peace in response to the question asked to him about his comments on the communal clashes between Hindu and Muslims in parts of Haryana, a Bordering State to the National Capital Territory of India, New Delhi. He said, “The US State Department as always “Urge Peace” and “Urge Parties to refrain from violence.”
The official spokesperson Matthew Miller while addressing the US State Department briefing on Wednesday said, “I would say of with respect to the clashes that obviously we would, as always, urge calm and urge parties to refrain from violent actions.”
Miller, on the question of whether any Americans had been affected by the violence in Gurugram, added that he is “not aware” and has no information regarding any Americans impacted by the unrest caused in Haryana. He added that regarding this, he has to follow up with the US Embassy in India.
Haryana Violence Updates
On Monday, 31st July, Haryana was rocked by violent riots that were sparked by a religious procession organised by right-wing organizations Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal in Nuh.Â
The procession faced heavy firing and stone-pelting, and about 2,500 people had to take shelter in a temple. The violence left two home guards dead and dozens of people, including around 20 policemen, injured.
A mosque in Gurugram was set on fire on Monday night, and its cleric was killed. In the past few days, several shops and business establishments have been attacked. The violence that began on Monday has rapidly spread to other districts.
According to India Today’s Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), a troubling sequence of unchecked aggression propagated through social media led to the outbreak of violence on the streets of Haryana’s Nuh district on Monday. Various online platforms saw posts containing thinly veiled threats and incitements to violence just days before the violence erupted.
In response to the violence, the state government has taken steps to strengthen security in the districts near Nuh. Schools and colleges have been closed to maintain law and order and peace and security in the area.
The Haryana state government has suspended mobile internet services in Nuh, Faridabad, Palwal, and three subdivisions of Gurugram until August 5 due to critical and tense conditions caused by communal clashes. The decision was made to prevent the spread of misinformation and rumours through social media platforms.
On Wednesday, following communal clashes on Tuesday, right-wing organizations launched over 25 protests in different parts of Delhi-NCR. Police say that no permission was sought for the protest.
The Supreme Court issued a notice to the governments of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Delhi over VHP-Bajrang Dal protest marches. The court said that rallies can go on but should be video-graphed. Additionally, the states must ensure that no hate speech takes place during the rallies and deploy additional forces for security reasons.
As of now, six people, including two civilians, have died in the violence. The Haryana government reported that 116 people have been arrested while 90 others have been detained. On Thursday, paramilitary forces conducted a flag march in Nuh.
On August 2, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar stated that the government will recover the cost of damage from the perpetrators. Yesterday, he also said that no accused will be spared and strict justice will be ensured for the victims and their families.
The battalion headquarters of the 2nd India Reserve Battalion from the police complex has been Shifted from Bhondsi to Nuh district by the State Government of Haryana, This is done in order to meet the urgent need to maintain law and order and peace and security.
He added, “We have laws to recover losses from those found guilty and we will ensure that rioters found guilty would pay for the significant damages they have caused to the private property and the losses for public property will be borne by the government.
