New Delhi: Former UP Shia Central Waqf Board chairman Waseem Rizvi’s plea in Supreme Court for removal of 26 verses from Quran triggered a huge row, with many Muslim clerics and Islamist voicing strong opposition to his ‘blasphemous’ moves.
Rizvi had approached the Apex Court with a petition, seeking deletion of 26 verses of the Quran which he has claimed are of “violent nature and not part of the original Quran but were added after the death of Prophet Mohammad”.
His petition has infuriated the Muslim community and the anger against him is visible in their protests. On Sunday, thousands of Muslims protested against Rizvi in Lucknow. Sunni and Shia clerics led the protest against Rizvi and sought his arrest.
Rs 11 lakh bounty to behead Rizvi, declares Shia lawyer
Amir-ul-Hassan Jafari, a Shia lawyer and ‘activist’, has announced Rs 11 lakh bounty for whoever beheads ex-UP Shia Board Chief Waseem Rizvi for his petition to remove 26 verses from Quran.
Since Rizvi, alleged in his petition that these verses promote terrorism and jihad, he has been facing backlash from the Muslim community.
“Rizvi is a demon. “He is not a Hindu or Muslim; he is a demon. I want to announce that whoever beheads him, I will give him Rs 11 lakh,” announced Amir-ul-Hassan Jafari, former president of Moradabad Bar Association.
कुरान में बदलाव मामले में वसीम रिजवी के खिलाफ फतवा, सिर कलम कर लानेवाले को मिलेगा 11 लाख का इनाम#WasimRizvi #Quran
Updates here – https://t.co/XJGKJRzo9T pic.twitter.com/hQe2EgflAf
— Newsroom Post (@NewsroomPostCom) March 13, 2021
Maulana Syed Kalbe Jawad Naqvi and Advocate Mehmood Pracha from Jama Masjid in Delhi have given a call for protest march after Friday prayers on March 19.
Series of death threats against Rizvi
After Rizvi files his petition over removal of verses, series of vitriolic videos have surfaced on social media. Many of them have issued death threats to Rizvi while at some places, people burnt his effigy.
Below video made its way on social media after Rizvi’s ‘blasphemous’ act, however their authenticity can’t be confirmed.
Kashmiri #Shia activists call for the execution of Wasim Rizvi for filing a petition in the Supreme Court seeking to remove 26 verses of the Quran. pic.twitter.com/3n1Yz4PN33
— SAMRI (@SAMRIReports) March 15, 2021
Muslim youths demolish the grave, that Wasim Rizvi reserved for himself, in Talkatora Imambara, Lucknow.#Sunni and #Shia clerics have declared Rizvi an apostate and announced that he wouldn’t be buried in any Muslim graveyard.https://t.co/9Wu3sCoNkI pic.twitter.com/F8W3RpYdFb
— SAMRI (@SAMRIReports) March 15, 2021
Banihal, Indian-administered Jammu & Kashmir. #Sunni activists call for the execution of Wasim Rizvi for filing a petition in the Supreme Court seeking to remove 26 verses of the Quran. pic.twitter.com/IsHVFf3xB8
— SAMRI (@SAMRIReports) March 15, 2021
