A 29-year-old woman was assaulted by her neighbours over an argument about prayers and rituals conducted at a small temple adjoining the wall of her house. The incident happened in Panduranga Nagar in Hyderabad’s Attapur. According to the woman, who was later identified as J Kavitha, she was doing puja at her ‘home temple’, when she was attacked by her neighbours, who were identified as Yesu and his wife Rathna. Kavitha claimed that her mother was also not spared by the infuriated neighbours. The incident happened on Friday morning at around 9 am.
Recounting what had happened, Kavitha said, “I was doing puja at my home temple when three people came and began calling me out of my house. My mother and I were beaten by them. They have been fighting with us for a very long time now. For the last one year, they have been harassing us. They have a problem with us ringing the bell and praying at the small temple that we have constructed at our house. They abuse and argue, whenever we ring the bell.”
The picture of the 'home temple' located adjoining Kavitha's house. (Image: Twitter/SumiranKomarraju)
The police however, said that Kavitha was using a loudspeaker, despite repeated complaints from her neighbours.
According to the police, Kavitha had built a small temple outside her house which adjoins the wall of her house. She called the temple Tuljabhavani temple. Speaking to TNM, Rajendranagar Inspector G Suresh said, “Every Tuesday and Friday, Kavitha would do a puja at the temple. She would use a loudspeaker from 6 am to 10 am. Her neighbours, irrespective of religion, had raised concerns about the same several times. Yesterday, being Friday, when the puja was being carried out, Kavitha's neighbour Rathna and her husband Yesu, attacked her for the loud noise. She suffered head injuries and had to get stitches.”
“Though their concern was genuine, as Yesu attacked her with a rod, we registered a case under Section 307 (Attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and we arrested him. We will also instruct Kavitha that the loudspeaker she uses should only produce sound below the permissible limits,” added the inspector.
This issue gained prominence on social media after it was posted on Twitter by one Sumiran Komarraju, who alleged a larger conspiracy against Hindus in Hyderabad. The tweet had gone viral and has received more than 5800 retweets and around 300 comments at the time of writing. The police however, said that Kavitha’s neighbours, irrespective of religion, had complaints against her.