As the city of Leicester came under rounds of violence between Hindu and Muslim communities, with online misinformation fueling the tension between both sides, a Muslim activist stepped in to save the life of a Hindu man who was attacked in the clashes.
“He saved my life,” Ram Keshwala, 32, told Sky News. “Because of that, I’m still here.”
Keshwala was in his car in Leicester when he was attacked amid accusations he tried to run over a Muslim crowd.
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As men tried to get Keshwala out of the vehicle, Muslim community activist Majid Freeman stepped in to say “leave him”, closing the car door to stop the attack.
Freeman recalls: “It was just mayhem. Everything was happening so fast.
“Other people were trying to come, and I was just shouting ‘stop, it’s done now’.
“But I don’t think there was anyone who was physically stopping it because the situation was so hostile… anyone could get hurt.”
Bilal Mangera, 33, a Muslim man, was also injured during clashes and ended up in hospital at the same time as Keshwala.
Restoring Peace
Meeting Keshwala for the first time, they both agree they want to see peace restored in their city.
“We need to find the root cause, that’s the first thing we need to find out,” Mangera says.
“Who are these youngsters who are coming, masked up, and instigating things? How do we control the youth that want to take revenge?”
Being falsely accused of supporting the RSS, Keshwala feels scared when he goes out. Freeman agreed there were fears on both sides.
“The moment everyone’s looking over their shoulders. Everyone’s losing, there are no winners,” he said.
Allah tells us that “If anyone saved a life it would be as if he saved the life of the whole humanity.” Quran 5:32
What Freeman did falls in line with similar heroic acts done by some other Muslims.
In September 2021, a Muslim man in Oxfordshire was praised for saving his neighbors when fire started in their house.
Azz Mahmoud, a Muslim youth worker in Oldham, performed CPR for the first time ever to save a man’s life.