‘I Love Muhammad’ row: Stones pelted in Gujarat, Karnataka over social media post; 60 detained | 10 updates

Amid the ongoing row over “I Love Muhammad”, there were reports of stone pelting incidents in both Karnataka and Gujarat. In Gujarat's Gandhinagar district, members of a minority community allegedly damaged several shops and vehicles and hurled stones at a village following the post, police said on Thursday.

Here are the top ten updates on “I Love Muhammad” row:

1. The controversy began on September 4 during a Barawafat procession in Rawatpur village, located in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. A light board reading “I Love Muhammad” was put up along the procession route for Eid Milad-un-Nabi, which celebrates the birth of Prophet Muhammad. However, local Hindu groups raised objections, calling it a “new tradition” that disrupted the established use of the area, which they noted is commonly used for Hindu festivals like Ram Navami.

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2. In Karnataka, according to a report by India Today, Police said the incident started after youths from two communities got into a clash over the banner. SP Davanagere Uma Prashnath said, “A banner written ‘I love Muhammad’ was put up in Karl Marx Nagar. Another community said this needs to be removed. People had gathered from both sides, but the police immediately went and dispersed everyone. Now the situation is completely peaceful. On stone pelting, we have to go and inquire now. But within five minutes, the police had reached and brought it under control. The banner has also been removed now.”

3. Meanwhile, a group from the minority community allegedly vandalised shops, damaged vehicles, and pelted stones in a village in Gujarat's Gandhinagar district in response to an objectionable social media post over the “I heart Muhammad” trend on X, police said on Thursday.

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4.“At around 11 pm on Wednesday, a large group broke the shutters of a shop belonging to the person who had put up a status on WhatsApp, which enraged the minority community members. They took out goods from his shop and burnt them,” he said. The group later hurled stones on Hindu areas. In retaliation, stones were pelted at the group from Hindu areas," the official said. Heavy police security has been deployed and the situation has been brought under control, he said.

5. PTI reported citing officials, around 60 people from Bahiyal village in Dehgam taluka of Gujarat have been detained in connection with the rioting and clashes that occurred late Wednesday night. Four shops and five to six vehicles were damaged in the attack, they said.

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6. "A social media post by a Hindu man on the ongoing trend 'I love Muhammad' enraged the minority community, which led to the attack," Gandhinagar SP Ravi Teja Vasamsetty said, as reported by PTI.

7. The online campaign quickly gained momentum on social media, with hashtags like #ILoveMuhammad trending across platforms. Users changed their profile pictures and widely shared images featuring the slogan in solidarity.

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8. AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi posted that "saying 'I Love Muhammad' is not a crime," emphasising that such expressions are protected under Article 25 of the Constitution, which guarantees freedom of religion.

9. Amid the 'I Love Muhammad' controversy, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday launched a veiled attack on Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and said, “They only gain votes by playing the Hindu-Muslim card”. On 'I Love Muhammad' row, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti told reporters here, “...Recently, a Muslim cleric in UP was caught, beaten, his beard torn, badly injured, and then asked to chant 'Jai Shree Ram'. If this isn't an offence, then why was 'I Love Muhammad' considered an offence? They only gain votes by playing the Hindu-Muslim card; otherwise, they wouldn't need to steal votes or resort to SIR... This is very unfortunate... Spreading this kind of poison in a country like India is a wake-up call...”

10. Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday strongly defended the right to express love for Prophet Muhammad, questioning how the phrase “I Love Muhammad” could be considered illegal. "Why should anyone object to writing this? Who can have an issue with these three words? I cannot understand how writing these three words can lead to an arrest. It must mean someone is truly mentally unwell to file a case over these three words. I would like the courts to quickly set this right. How is writing ‘I Love Muhammad’ unlawful?", he said.