Uttar Pradesh Cabinet To Table 1980 Moradabad Riots Report In Assembly

The state Cabinet of Uttar Pradesh has cleared a proposal to present an enquiry report on the 1980 Moradabad riots in the UP Assembly.

The riots saw the deaths of 83 people and injuries to 112 others. A one-member commission of Allahabad High Court Judge MP Saxena was appointed to investigate the incident and the reasons behind it.

The report was submitted to the government in November 1983, but sources say, reports TOI, that it has been sitting on various governments' desks since then without being released to the public.

However, the current dispensation led by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has decided to table the report before the Assembly, according to reports.

The details of the report are not yet known to the public. The incident happened on13 August 1980, during the VP Singh-led Congress government in the state, when a pig reportedly entered the Eidgah in Moradabad during the Eid namaz.

Around 70,000 people were reportedly attending the namaz at that moment. As per various accounts, the Muslims present in the Eidgah asked the police to intervene, but it refused.

In the ensuing police firing, 83 people had died, and more than 100 were injured. Riots subsequently followed the incident.

At the time, Congress-led by Indira Gandhi was in power at the Centre, said a government official.

Even though the report was submitted to the government in 1983, no subsequent governments released its content. When the matter came before the current Chief Minister, he decided to have it tabled in the Assembly, the official said, reports TOI.

He added that it was not clear why previous governments did not release the report, but the current state government believed that it was important to bring the truth to light.