A Hindu–Muslim clash occurred in Delhi's Jahangirpuri area on 16 April 2022, in the midst of a Hindu procession on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanti.

The clash took place during the last of three processions organised that day by Bajrang Dal, a right wing Hindu group nationalist organization.

The procession, whose members were reportedly brandishing swords and pistols, halted near a mosque where Muslims were holding Ramadan prayers, while blasting music from loudspeakers and shouting abusive slogans.

[5] On the 19 April, prompted by a complaint from its state president, the Bharatiya Janata Party that controls the local municipal corporation ordered demolition of the houses, shops and structures on the street where riots took place, as they were illegal encroachments.

They had participants armed with tridents, swords, knives, baseball bats, hockey sticks and a few country-made pistols.

[22][23][24] According to NewsClick, the third procession did not follow the prescribed route, and there were saffron flags and stones scattered at the entrance of the mosque.

[23] The Hindu processionists however insisted that the people from inside the mosque and the adjoining Muslim residents attacked them with stones.

Violence broke out after a man named Anshar (or Ansar), accompanied by a few others, started arguing with the members of the procession.

[29] Yunus Imam alias Sonu Chikna was also arrested after a video was circulated on social media on 17 April showing him firing a pistol during the riots.

[34] The police also released CCTV footage from the night before the riots, where several men are seen collecting sticks and rods from a nearby garbage dump, which led to an altercation with locals.

[35] On 23 April, Enforcement Directorate (ED) filed a money laundering case against Ansar, who is said to have an affluent home at Haldia in West Bengal.

[36] The BJP-controlled North Delhi Municipal Corporation,[6] acting on a complaint by its state party president, issued a late-night order on 19 April 2022, to demolish houses and shops on the street where the riot had occurred, claiming them to be encroachments into public areas.

[37][38] Demolition drives had been carried out following communal clashes in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Uttarakhand, all ruled by BJP governments, targeting "one community" (Muslims).

[8] The petitioner's counsel argued: This is about a completely unconstitutional and illegal demolition which has been ordered in Jahangirpuri area, where riots took place last week.

CPI(M)'s Brinda Karat took a copy of the order, rushed to the demolition site, and stood in front of a bulldozer, asking them to stop.