Kin’s home in UP to hotel in Delhi: some seek shelter away from Gurgaon

Khan, 45, is among those who decided to leave Gurgaon for the time being in the wake of “hostile environment”.

“I will keep monitoring the situation on social media before thinking of returning,” he said.

For Dr Mohammad, who works at a hospital in Gurgaon, the torching of the mosque not far away from his house drove his decision to move into a Delhi hotel with his family. “The mosque which was torched on Monday is within 1-2 km radius of my home. I was extremely worried about the safety of my two children. We couldn’t sleep as we heard gunshots…Next day, I found out that the Imam was killed. My friend called me and asked me to leave immediately,” he said.

“I don’t know when I’ll go back. For now, we just want to be safe,” he said.

At Tyagi colony in the interiors of Badshahpur, where a mob allegedly vandalised meat shops and burnt a mattress and a scrap shop Tuesday, around 9 houses of Muslim families were seen locked from outside.

Vivek, a resident of the area, said, “They didn’t say anything when we asked where they were going…they said the atmosphere was not right…”

Meanwhile, a small mazaar in Badshahpur was allegedly vandalised by a mob Tuesday. Indira, a local, said, “They raised slogans and broke the shrine which was already under construction.”

Residents of Sohna, where police and civilian vehicles were torched along with many shops, too voiced similar apprehensions. Tayyab Ali, a daily wage labourer, said that he has sent his two daughters away to a relative’s place. “We have told them not to return till things are normal,” he said.

Meanwhile, Naveen Sindhu, ACP (Sohna), said no incident of fleeing has come to his knowledge so far.

DGP, Haryana, PK Agarwal said Gurgaon is safe. “There have been incidents of violence targeting people, but action will be taken,” he added.