Murder, mob violence leave village in Himachal Pradesh shaken, divided

With tensions simmering, curfew is in force across Salooni sub-division.

While CM Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu has called for calm, leader of opposition and his predecessor Jai Ram Thakur has demanded an NIA investigation, alleging that Hussain was also questioned by the police in the 1998 Satrundi shootout in which militants had gunned down 35 people. On Saturday, the BJP held demonstrations across the state and accused the government of barring Thakur from entering Salooni to meet the victims’ family.

Police said Hussain suspected that Manohar was in a relationship with his minor niece. A reclusive cattle merchant who lived on a hilltop, Hussain allegedly invited Manohar to his house where he killed him.

It was on June 6 that Manohar, the only brother of three married sisters, went missing. A matriculate who helped his shepherd father, he had gone to graze his dozen-odd mules on the hilltop. Three days later, his remains were found in three bags dumped in a stream. A case of murder was registered at Kihar police station in Chamba.

On Thursday, a mob of thousands gathered outside Kihar police station, damaged government vehicles and marched towards Sanghni, where they set the houses of Hussain on fire.

“This is probably the first time something like this has happened in Chamba. I believe the tension will only escalate. Although Chamba is generally a calm place, when something does occur, it tends to have a lasting impact,” said Rakesh Sharma, a 21-year-old student and resident of Salooni.

A government employee in Salooni said: “The minority community (Muslims) has been living here for as long as us, not just for the past few decades. They are part and parcel of this society, but this incident has shattered our faith. The brutal manner in which the murder was committed is the main cause of tension.”

Advocate Liyakat Ali, a resident of Jaladi village close to Sanghni, says there is fear in the hamlet. “While the situation appears normal now, we cannot rule out any possibilities. The police presence is reassuring, but there is still a sense of fear. Musaffir Hussain’s burnt property in village Sanghni, not far from my house, is rarely visited by him. He primarily stays in his house on a hilltop.”

While Jai Ram Thakur had alleged that Hussain had exchanged cash amounting to Rs 95 lakh after demonetisation and had Rs 2 crore in his bank account, Chamba DC Apurv  Devgun said they have been able to find only 11 lakh in the family bank accounts including their fixed deposits.