• Maulana Saad, 19, was killed inside a mosque hours after deadly communal violence in a neighbouring district

A deputy imam has been killed after a mob of far right Hindus torched and opened fire at a mosque in a suburb of the Indian Capital, New Delhi, hours after deadly communal violence in a nearby district.

Police have identified the victim as 19-year-old Maulana Saad, the prayer leader of the Anjuman Jama mosque located in sector 57 in Gurugram, a city of 1.2 million.

Three other people were present, of whom, one was injured and two remained unharmed.

The mosque came under attack by the mob early yesterday (1 August), a day after violence in the neighbouring Nuh District in the Northern Haryana State.

“A group of 50 to 60 miscreants resorted to firing and arson at Anjum in the early hours of yesterday, which led to the death of one person and wounded another,” the Deputy Commissioner of Police Nitish Agarwal told reporters. “We have arrested a few people, registered a first information Police report against them and have launched an investigation into the incident,” Agarwal added.

This comes as a Hindu far right group aligned with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been campaigning against the Friday prayers in Gurugram, located in the Haryana State. The Anjuman mosque was one of the few places officially recognised to hold prayers.

The incident followed violent clashes between the Hindu and Muslim communities in Nuh, where the authorities imposed a curfew.

At least four people, including two Police personnel, were killed in the clashes in the Nuh District.

The violence erupted when a Hindu religious procession passed through the Muslim majority region.

“The procession was meant to move from one temple to another but clashes broke out between the two groups on the way, which resulted in the death of four people,” the spokesperson of the Nuh Police, Krishan Kumar told the Reuters news agency. He said that two of the dead were members of the home guard, a voluntary force that helps the Police control civil disturbances.

Another 10 Police personnel were injured in the clashes, he added.

Several cars were torched and stones were thrown at the Police, and the State Government sought additional forces to bring the situation under control, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

The Police used tear gas and fired shots in the air to disperse the crowd.

The authorities have suspended internet services in the area and banned large gatherings.

“Today’s incident is unfortunate. I appeal to all the people to maintain peace in the State. The guilty will not be spared at any cost, strictest action will be taken against them,” the Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said on the social media platform X.

“Our first priority is to bring the situation under control. We are appealing to all to maintain peace. We are also trying to send forces by helicopter,” said the State’s Interior Minister Anil Vij.

Earlier on Monday (31 July), a railway security guard was arrested after he allegedly shot dead a colleague and three passengers on a train in what appeared to be a hate crime. But, the Police have said that the suspect, Chetan Singh, had mental health issues. In one of the videos widely shared on X, Singh could be seen standing next to a blood soaked body with his rifle in one hand. “If you want to live and vote in Hindustan, I am telling you, it’s only Modi and Yogi,” he was heard saying, referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister of the Uttar Pradesh State Yogi Adityanath. Two of the passengers shot dead were identified as Muslim men.

 (Al Jazeera and news agencies)