The Assam Police on Tuesday detained a retired school principal from Cachar district over a social media comment linking the recent blast near Delhi’s Red Fort to upcoming elections.
The incident occurred after a car exploded outside gate number one of the Red Fort metro station on Monday evening. Although the exact cause of the explosion remains unclear, authorities have registered a case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and the Explosives Act.
Police said that the detained individual, identified as Nazrul Islam Barbhuiyan, a former principal of Banskandi NMHS School and resident of Durgapur, had allegedly posted a remark on Facebook stating, “Election is coming.”
Cachar Assistant Superintendent of Police (Crime) Rajat Kumar Pal confirmed the detention, saying the retired principal appeared to have tried to “add a political angle” to the national incident, Scroll.in reported.
Pal told The Indian Express that such comments could potentially “misuse and politicise” sensitive matters and risk creating communal tensions. He added that remarks like these could increase the likelihood of disturbances among communities.
Pal said that the police’s social media monitoring unit was alerted to the Facebook comment made by Barbhuiyan, after which he was taken into custody and questioned about his intentions behind the post.
Cachar Senior Superintendent of Police Partha Protim Das told The Assam Tribune that the retired principal’s remarks were considered inappropriate, especially in light of the sensitive national security situation. He said the authorities were investigating the motive behind the post and warned that social media activity would remain under close surveillance.
Barbhuiyan’s detention followed shortly after Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced the government’s decision to revive its social media crackdown, similar to the one initiated after the April terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam.
The April 22 attack at Baisaran near Pahalgam killed 26 people and injured 17 others, with police saying the assailants targeted tourists based on their religion. Most of the victims were Hindu. In the aftermath, Assam Police had arrested around 97 individuals for allegedly posting content that appeared to justify or celebrate the incident.
Commenting on the renewed crackdown, Sarma said that after both the Pahalgam attack and the recent Delhi blast, some users had posted messages or emojis expressing joy over the violence, which, according to him, amounted to supporting terrorism. He added that the police were conducting background checks on such individuals and that arrests would be made if necessary.
The chief minister said he had instructed the police to trace the identities and locations of those behind such posts, adding, “If they are from Assam, we will have to arrest them.”