Vandalisation of UP Muslim shrine: Police arrest Hindutva activist
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Ghaziabad/UP: Taking cognisance of a video clip that has gone viral on social media, police in this Uttar Pradesh district arrested a functionary of the Hindu Raksha Dal on Monday for allegedly damaging a mazar located near the Hindon river bridge, PTI reported.
Accused Prince Thakur (25), a resident of the Nandgram area, was purportedly seen in the footage damaging the decades-old mazar situated under the flyover near the Chhath Puja Ghat, police said.
Two others were also with him, but only Thakur was seen in the video causing damage to the mazar.
In the video circulated on social media platforms on Sunday, the accused is seen kicking and damaging the structure.
The accused himself shared the video on social media, expressing his resentment against what he claimed was an "illegally-constructed" shrine.
He also issued a statement along with the clip, asserting that the Hindu Raksha Dal would not tolerate any form of encroachment and threatening further action if authorities do not intervene.
Additional Commissioner of Police (ACP), Sahibabad, Shweta Yadav, confirmed the arrest, noting that such provocative content on social media poses a significant threat to harmony in society.
Such acts will not be tolerated, the officer said.
A case has been registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections relating to injurious acts against religious feelings and deliberate attempts to outrage religious sentiments, she added.
Thakur has been sent to judicial custody.
Meanwhile, in another news from the state, a petrol pump owner’s son was allegedly assaulted by a group of Kanwariyas in Uttar Pradesh’s Bijnor district after they reportedly objected to being asked not to light incense sticks near fuel storage tanks during a religious procession.
The incident took place when the man, identified as Sunny Chaudhary, requested the group to avoid lighting incense close to the petrol pumps, citing safety concerns. According to reports, some members of the group allegedly misidentified him as a Muslim and accused him of opposing their religious practice.
A video of the alleged assault surfaced on social media, showing Chaudhary surrounded by several Kanwariyas and being beaten. Local media reports said that one individual in the group attempted to give the incident a communal angle by claiming that Chaudhary belonged to a different religion.
