Junaid’s family released after arrest over support for NEET protest
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New Delhi: The family of Muhammad Junaid, who said they were targeted by Uttar Pradesh police for supplying food to NEET paper-leak protesters at Jantar Mantar, has been released from custody, Junaid’s lawyer said on Sunday, July 26.
The lawyer posted on Instagram that Junaid and his entire family are now free, a claim later confirmed by a family member. Junaid had alleged that late on July 24 police raided his home in Masuri, Ghaziabad, arrested his father Mustafa, detained his minor brother and seized financial and identity documents including PAN cards, Aadhaar cards and bank passbooks.
Junaid told reporters he was being pressured to stop participating in the protests and ordered to return from Delhi. He also alleged that police went to his sister’s home in Meerut and arrested her husband and father-in-law; Meerut Police denied those claims.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), for whom Junaid had volunteered at Jantar Mantar, condemned the action and accused the police of harassing a volunteer instead of pursuing actual criminals. “Our team is in touch with him, and we will never let them victimise him or his family,” the party said.
The incident comes amid other reports of Muslims being singled out over involvement in or support for the CJP-led protests. Separately, five Muslim students returning to Jamia Millia Islamia from Jantar Mantar were reportedly taken to a police station late at night and released only after intervention by others.
