The November 2024 Sambhal violence was “pre-planned” and hatched by Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Zia-ur-Rahman Barq, MLA Iqbal Mehmood’s son Suhel Iqbal and mosque management members, stated a report by a three-member judicial commission that had probed the issue. Violence broke out near Sambhal’s Shahi Jama Masjid on November 24, 2024, during protests against a court-ordered survey of the 16th-century mosque. Story continues below this adThe commission also referred to the “history of riots and violence” in Sambhal as a possible cause leading to the violence. The report stated, “The town of Sambhal has a population of 80% Muslim and 20% Hindu. The commission also noted that seven of the police personnel suffered bullet injuries “from firing by people in the crowd”.