Mohammad the Idiot
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Mohammad the Idiot was a controversial short story published in the Sunday magazine supplement of Deccan Herald newspaper in December 1986.[1]
Background
The story was about a handicapped, half-witted boy named Mohammad who committed suicide because of the travails of his family suffering from poorness. It was a fiction story originally written by PKN Namboodri a decade earlier in Malayalam language and had nothing to do with the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It, in fact, created no turmoil when first published in the Kannada language.[2] However, Muslims in the city of Bengaluru took that story as a reference to their prophet and protested violently.[3] Marchers went on a rampage and attacked police personnel in the city of Bengaluru, Mysore and Mandya.[4] Curfew was declared in Bengaluru and its suburban areas. The newspaper’s editor who happened to be its publisher was arrested for ‘fomenting enmity between two communities and writing articles in a manner prejudicial to public peace.’ However, he was soon released on bail.[5] The incident claimed at least 4 lives and over 50 people were injured.[6]
References
- ^ "4 Killed and 50 Hurt in Riots Over Indian Magazine Article". The New York Times. 8 December 1986.
- ^ "The Taslima Nasrin "article" that cost two lives". Sans Serif. 2 March 2010.
- ^ "Caught in a cliché". Deccan Chronicle. 5 May 2015.
- ^ "Moslems rampage in India over magazine story". United Press International. 9 December 1986.
- ^ "India Moslems Riot A 3d Day Over Story". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- ^ "4 Killed and 50 Hurt in Riots Over Indian Magazine Article". The New York Times. 8 December 1986.