Thread by @UdaySRana

I was in Western UP after last year's crackdown against anti CAA protests and here's a pattern I noticed -

Yogi's ecosystem targeted prosperous, upwardly mobile Muslims.

(1/n)

Shops belonging to Muslim business owners in Muzaffarnagar's Meenakshi Chowk were sealed without due process - some of those shop owners weren't even in town during the protests.

Hindu owned shops in Shiv Chowk were left untouched.

(2/n)

Residents of Muslim majority neighbourhoods in Muzaffarnagar reported cops entering their homes, vandalising their properties - these houses belonged to upstanding members of the community who are seen as role models by other middle class Muslims.

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Jewelery, money, TVs etc were looted. Motorcycles and washing machines were smashed - this was an assault on Muslim wealth and capital. Allegedly carried out by men in uniform.

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One family had a wedding coming up. Their standing in the community was reduced after this assault, they lost a lot of money. This is just one example of the kind of stories I heard.

(5/n)

Muslims in western UP told me this pattern is not new. Yogi's crackdown on slaughterhouses in 2017 was seen as a similar assault on Muslim wealth. It was seen as an attempt to strip them of their financial strength.

(6/n)

Amidst the arrest of activists and the killing of people in police firing, Muslims also suffered financial setbacks. Yogi government's call to seize property of "rioters" is being seen in this context.

(7/n)

The November 1938 pogrom against Jews in Nazi Germany or 'Kristallnacht' comes to mind. Shops belonging to Jewish business owners were demolished by Nazi goons. In UP 2020, the allegation is directly against the police. Chilling parallel.

(8/n)