Maulana jailed for Bareilly violence clears three-decade-old loan to cooperative society

Budaun (UP), Oct 13 (PTI) Maulana Tauqeer Raza, who is currently lodged at the Fatehgarh Central Jail in connection with the September 26 violence in Bareilly, on Monday repaid his nearly three-decade-old loan he owed to a cooperative society in Budaun district According to officials, Raza had borrowed Rs 5,055 from the Rasoolpur Puthi Sadhan Sahkari Samiti in 1997 for purchasing fertilizer but had failed to repay the amount.

After his name surfaced in the September 26 Bareilly violence over "I love Muhammad" protests, local authorities reviewed his financial records and found the pending loan.

A recovery notice was subsequently pasted at his Bareilly residence, directing payment within 15 days.

Committee secretary Hridayesh Kumar Singh said that Maulana’s representative, Shah Nawaz Khan, contacted the committee expressing willingness to clear the dues on Raza’s behalf.

“We informed our senior officials and called him to the District Cooperative Bank in Budaun,” Singh said.

General Manager of the Cooperative Bank, Hari Babu Bharti, stated that the total amount of Rs 30,522 was deposited -- Rs 5,055.40 as principal, Rs 24,013.60 as interest, and rest recovery charges.

A receipt was issued to Shah Nawaz Khan after the payment. PTI CORR ABN NB