Gautam Buddh Nagar Police Commissioner Alok Singh and District Magistrate Suhas L Yathiraj on Monday held a peace meeting with religious leaders of different faiths, soliciting their support in maintaining law and order, according to officials.
The inter-faith meeting by the top two officers of the district comes following directives of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for such public reach out campaigns in the wake of recent communal protests in parts of the state.
The recent events following the offensive comments against Prophet Mohammed by now suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma and her expelled colleague Naveen Jindal throw up a question: Is there the rule of law in the administration of justice?
The controversy triggered by remarks made by two former BJP functionaries against Prophet Mohammed is India’s "internal issue" and it is not an attention-grabbing matter in Bangladesh unlike in some other Muslim nations, a senior Bangladeshi minister has said, as he dismissed criticism that the country's government is "compromising" on the issue.
Police in Maharashtra on Monday registered a case against a 22-year-man who posted a message on a social media platform in support of suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma, an official said. Sharma is facing a number of cases and police summons in connection with her alleged derogatory remarks against Prophet Mohammad. Around 11.30 pm on Sunday, a person saw the message posted by the accused, Mukesh Chavan, on his Facebook page and filed a police complaint, the official from Narpoli police station in Bhiwandi town said.
The Uttar Pradesh Police has so far arrested 325 people from eight districts of the state in connection with the violence that took place following Friday prayers on June 10, an official said on Monday.
The violence was triggered by an alleged controversial remark against Prophet Mohammed by now-suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma during a TV debate.
In a statement issued here, Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar said 325 people have been arrested from eight districts of the state and 13 FIRs registered in this regard in nine districts.
Flaying the demolition of the house of an accused in the Prayagraj violence case, BSP chief Mayawati on Monday said an atmosphere of "fear and terror" has been created and that the courts should take cognisance.
The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister also demanded that former BJP functionaries Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal, whose remarks against Prophet Mohammad, sparked protests should be arrested.
In a series of tweets in Hindi, Mayawati said, "By targeting a particular community, doing demolition using bulldozer, other malicious aggressive actions, crushing the protest, an atmosphere of fear and terror has been created.
The situation in parts of West Bengal, where violent protests had erupted over controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammad, is under control, DGP Manoj Malaviya said on Monday.
He said police has arrested over 200 people from different parts of the state and lodged 42 cases.
“So far, the situation is under control,” Malaviya told reporters at the West Bengal Police Headquarters here.
Instructions have been issued to arrest expats from the Fahaheel area who organised a demonstration after Friday prayers in support of Prophet Muhammad, Arab News, an English-language daily newspaper published in Saudi Arabia, quoted sources as saying.
Flaying the demolition of the house of an accused in the Prayagraj violence case, BSP chief Mayawati on Monday said an atmosphere of "fear and terror" has been created and that the courts should take cognisance.
The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister also demanded that former BJP functionaries Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal, whose remarks against Prophet Mohammad, sparked protests should be arrested.
The Bengal Imams Association also asked members of the community not to fall into the traps of vested interests and indulge in violence.
Five advocates from an association, Zila Adhivakta Manch, claimed in the petition that the owner of the house, demolished on Sunday, was Javed's wife Parveen Fatima.
The said house was given to Fatima by her parents before her marriage, so Ahmad had no ownership over the house and on the plot, hence the demolition was against the law, claimed the plea which was e-mailed to the Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court on Sunday.
Sharma has been granted time and will not appear before the Bhiwandi police on Monday, he said. The official did not specify how much time Sharma has been granted. The Bhiwandi police in Thane district had registered a case against Sharma over her remarks about the Prophet during a TV debate, following a complaint lodged by a representative of the Raza Academy on May 30
Over 400 people have been arrested so far in a clampdown on those involved in the violent protests on Friday in several states against the controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammad by two now-sacked BJP functionaries, with authorities in Uttar Pradesh razing "illegal" houses of the accused for the second day.
The Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU) on Sunday staged a demonstration on the JNU campus against the demolition of the house of activist and former JNU student Afreen Fatima in Uttar Pradesh's Prayagraj.
The Prayagraj Development Authority (PDA) on Sunday demolished the house of Javed Ahmad, alias Pump, the alleged mastermind of the June 10 violence in Prayagraj, amid heavy police deployment. Ahmad is Fatima's father.
The Nupur Sharma episode has driven a chasm within right-wing supporters, with a significant section decrying the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s position on the issue.