Ruckus during 'I Love Mohammad' procession in Uttarakhand, seven arrested

Rudrapur (Uttarakhand), Sep 22 (PTI) Seven people, including the main accused, were arrested on Monday for allegedly holding an unauthorised religious procession, attacking police personnel and vandalising government vehicles in Kashipur, Udham Singh Nagar district, officials said.

They said that at about 8 pm on Sunday night, at Alikhan Chowk in the Bansfodan area of ​​Kashipur, some people suddenly started taking out a procession towards Valmiki Basti, carrying banners with the words 'I Love Mohammad' and shouting slogans.

They said that the crowd created a ruckus when the procession started swelling. The police tried to stop it, but they were attacked with sticks and stones, and government vehicles were vandalised. During this, Sub-Inspector Anil Joshi was also assaulted.

Udham Singh Nagar Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Manikant Mishra inspected the scene the same night and, based on footage from nearby CCTV cameras and videos taken from mobile phones, directed the police to identify the rioters and ensure their immediate arrest.

Officials said that the police arrested seven rioters, including Nadeem Akhtar, the main accused in the incident. Akhtar is accused of organising a gathering of approximately 400-500 people at Ali Khan Chowk, after which the crowd suddenly started a procession, shouting "I love Mohammad." Police have registered a case against Akhtar and 400 rioters under relevant sections of BNS. Apart from arresting seven alleged rioters, 10 others have been into custody and are being interrogated.

Besides Akhtar (47), the arrested individuals have been identified as Mohammad Asad (18), Kamran (19), Moeen Raza (26), and Danish Ali (28), all from Kashipur.

The administration has deployed additional police force to maintain law and order in the area, while the Municipal Corporation and Electricity Department have launched an immediate crackdown on illegal activities. To maintain peace, prohibitory orders have been imposed under Section 163 of the BNSS. PTI DPT AMJ AMJ