Muslim men not killed by police firing, Sambhal judicial panel blames Muslim leaders for pre-planned violence

The judicial panel formed to investigate the 2024 Sambhal riot, triggered after authorities reached the Shahi Jama Masjid to conduct a court-ordered survey following claims that it had been built over the site of an ancient Shiva temple, has given a clean chit to the Uttar Pradesh Police over the deaths of four of the five persons killed during the violence.

The panel further alleged that the violence was pre-planned and orchestrated in connivance with Samajwadi Party MP Zia-ur-Rahman Barq, Suhail Iqbal, son of MLA Iqbal Mehmood, and members of the Shahi Jama Masjid's management committee.

The findings were made in the report prepared by a three-member judicial commission headed by former Allahabad High Court judge Justice Devendra Kumar Arora, which was submitted in August 2025 and tabled in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly on Wednesday, and was unequivocal in suggesting that the violence was neither spontaneous nor accidental but a calculated and organised mobilisation, according to The Indian Express report.

The report blamed Zia-ur-Rahman Barq and Suhail Iqbal, son of MLA Iqbal Mehmood, for the violence, linking it to their political ambitions and to exert their influence and control over the mosque, and, to prove their involvement, the report cited WhatsApp messages urging people to gather in large numbers and telephone conversations between Barq and Zafar Ali on the eve of the second survey.

Over the deaths of four Muslim men during the violence, the report suggested that they could have occurred in cross-firing while exculpating the police, stating that they did not die from police firing, and citing post-mortem reports, forensic evidence and ballistic analysis, which said that the deceased bore bullets from .315-bore weapons and that police personnel deployed at the site were not proved to have carried such firearms.

Besides, the commission noted the absence of complaints, statements or FIRs against the police before the commission by the kin of the deceased, identified as Naeem, Bilal, Numan and a 19-year-old youth, which was, however, contrary to the statements given by them to Maktoob Media, where they alleged that the police had killed them in the firing.

It further observed that seven police personnel sustained bullet injuries allegedly fired by people in the crowd. It concluded that the deaths were likely caused by cross-firing among alleged miscreants in the crowd, identified in the report as members of local Turk and Pathan groups.

The commission suggested that those found guilty could face grave punishment, including life imprisonment under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), describing the Sambhal violence as a "grave and deadly threat to national security" that was orchestrated with the intention of undermining India's unity, integrity, sovereignty, security and economic stability.

The report recorded incidents of stone-pelting, arson, firing, attacks on police personnel, damage to public and private property, and the alleged looting of police ammunition during the clashes. It also noted the recovery of a 12-bore shotgun shell marked "Made in USA", calling for further scrutiny over possible external involvement.

Responding to the findings, SP MP Zia-ur-Rahman Barq agreed that the violence was pre-planned but alleged that it was orchestrated by the police administration and the government rather than the public. He questioned the commission's conclusions, claiming that no evidence showed residents carrying or firing weapons and accusing the government of withholding the report for political gains.

SP MP Mohibullah Nadvi defended Barq and Suhail Iqbal, alleging that their names were included as part of a conspiracy.

Meanwhile, an earlier fact-finding report by APCR and Karwan-e-Mohabbat had described the violence as "targeted anti-Muslim violence", alleging police excesses, state complicity and systematic repression following the mosque survey.

According to the commission, the disturbances erupted after a section of Muslims objected to the survey of the mosque in Chandausi, ordered in connection with a civil suit asserting that the structure had been erected by Mughal emperor Babur in 1526 after demolishing a Hindu temple.