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ShareNEW DELHI: The supporters of Shahi Imam of Jama Masjid, Syed Ahmed Bukhari, and media persons got involved in a minor scuffle outside Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's residence in New Delhi on Tuesday.
The incident occurred after the Imam came out of a meeting with Manmohan Singh. As the Imam and his supporters abused media persons, the police personnel stationed there stood as mute spectators, too scared to stop the Imam.
A complaint was registered against the Imam, his brother Yahya Bukhari and his supporters at the Chanakyapuri police station.
The Imam had come to meet Singh and submit a set of recommendations that were finalised at a national conference of Muslim leaders on development of the community. Hordes of scribes waited for him outside to quiz him on the meeting.
The brawl took place when a reporter sought the Imam's reaction to the government's recent bid to introduce reservation quotas in all educational institutions and whether he wanted reservation for minorities as well.
"As he came out, we asked him what transpired in the meeting with the Prime Minister. Instead of answering us, he lost his cool and started abusing us," said Yusuf Ansari, a Zee news journalist, who filed the complaint against the Imam and his supporters.
"His brother, Yahya Bukhari, hit me and tried to break the camera. His supporters surrounded us, hurled the choicest abuses and even threatened to kill me," he added.
"What was startling was that the police personnel stationed at the PM's residence were too scared to stop the Imam and his supporters and did not intervene," Ansari said.
When the media persons tried to stop the Imam and insisted on an apology, he asked his driver to move his vehicle. "He almost trampled one of us," said Ansari. When contacted, the Imam said the scribes had abused him.
"The scuffle broke out because of their rowdy behaviour," he said New Delhi district DCP Anand Mohan said a complaint was received from a journalist. "We have asked for the television footage of the incident," he said.
Science and Technology Minister Kapil Sibal said such behaviour against the media was unacceptable, unconstitutional and against democracy. "The press was only performing its duty," he said.
