The sale of a home to a Muslim man in a Hindu-majority housing colony in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad sparked a protest on Tuesday, with residents claiming that it could lead to “demographic changes”, The Times of India reported.

Nearly 450 Hindu families reside in the colony located on Kanth Road in the city’s TDI City housing society, according to the newspaper. The residents demanded the cancellation of the registration of the sale as it could “spark a trend of Hindu families leaving their apartments”.

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The home was sold by a person identified as Ashok Bajaj to a Muslim doctor named Ikra Chaudhary, The Times of India reported. The transaction “violated social harmony”, the residents said, adding that the colony previously had no Muslim families residing there.

“Bajaj sold his house to a non-Hindu without giving any information to us,” The Times of India quoted a resident Payal Rastogi as saying. “We live here peacefully and there was never any issue before.”

Rastogi said that the residents wanted Bajaj to cancel the registration of the sale. “We have already lodged a complaint with the district administration and local police,” she added.

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Another resident, Pallavi, claimed that they had no enmity with any community. “We just don’t want the system to change,” the newspaper quoted her as saying.

Pallavi added: “This has been our home for over 15 years, and we feel it is important that the house is registered in the name of a Hindu again. Otherwise, Hindus might start leaving, and everything will change.”

District Magistrate Anuj Kumar Singh said that the administration had received a complaint, The Times of India reported. “We are aware of the situation and are working to resolve the matter peacefully,” he said, adding that the administration and the police were in talks with both parties to ensure that communal harmony was maintained.