Shamli: Is Kandhla the new Kairana? - That's the question people are asking these days after alleged mass exodus of Hindus from Kairana in Uttar Pradesh made headlines.
BJP MP Hukum Singh on Tuesday released a list of 63 Hindu families 'forced out' of Kandhla.
Here, most of the questions over 'Is Kandhla the new Kairana?' have been answered:-
Is Kandhla unsafe for Hindus?
According to a local businessman and BJP worker, Tarun Agarwal, "Kandhla was the place where Karna's dal (army) used to be stationed during the Kurukshetra war. Now, this has become an unsafe place for Hindus."
Tarun put together the list of 63 Hindu families forced out of Kandhla that was released by MP Hukum Singh on Tuesday, according to a report in ET.
Why are Hindu families leaving Kandhla?
According to some local Hindu residents, as Muslims are in a majority here, a small unit of army should be arranged here so that we don't feel unsafe.
Muslims' population growing; Hindus' declining
Reportedly, Muslim population that was 16,000 in 1995 has increased to 26,000. On the other hand, Hindus are now just 8,000 here.
What is the bone of contention?
An old Digambar Jain temple at Gandhi Chowk is the epicenter of communal tension in Kairana, according to a report in ET.
The area where the temple is situated, Saravgyan Khaduala, is nestled between areas dominated by Muslim communities Qureshis and Khatiqs.
The temple was targeted multiple times - On April 1, 2015, the temple was pelted with stones and in 2013 on Janmashtami.
Interestingly, right across from the temple is one of the oldest mosques of Kairana. Noteworthy, this mosque shares a wall with the Laxminarayan temple, considered as the most popular temple of Kandhla.
