Gujarat: Eight AAP workers arrested for anti-Modi posters, party calls it "tanashahi"

The Ahmedabad Police's Detection of Crime Branch on Friday arrested eight persons for putting up 'Modi Hatao, Desh Bachao' (Remove Modi, Save Country) posters in various parts of the city.

All eight persons, who are workers of the Aam Aadmi Party, have been booked for criminal conspiracy, mischief, and under sections of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.

The FIRs have been lodged based on a written complaint filed by policemen.

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The Ahmedabad Detection of Crime Branch (DCB) in a statement said that several people had put up "objectionable" posters stating "Modi Hatao, Desh Bachao" referring to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on several public places. Saying that it was a "criminal act", the statement stated that the "objectionable" posters were put up in areas surrounding Isanpur, Maninagar, Vatva, Narol, Vadaj, and Airport police stations and accordingly cases were registered.

The statement said that after identifying the people behind the posters, they were arrested. The persons have been identified as Natvarlal P Thakor, Jatin C Patel, Vipil Sharma, Ajay Chauhan, all residents of Vatva, Kuldip Bhatt, resident of Maninagar, Arvind Chauhan, Jivan Maheshwari, both residents of Vadaj and Paresh Tusliyani who resides in Naroda area of Ahmedabad. The FIR also involves an unidentified printing press as a suspect.

When contacted, Gujarat AAP unit president Isudan Gadhvi said, "It is a violation of right to freedom. Why are the BJP or Prime Minister Modi so scared of some posters. Why did the police not register FIR when big posters appeared against Arvind Kejriwal."

He added that arresting for putting up posters under stringent laws and making them non-bailable offense is nothing but "tanashahi (dictatorship) and misuse of police machinery".

The posters in Ahmedabad were put up on Thursday by AAP volunteers as part of party's anti-Modi campaign. After hundreds of such posters appeared in Delhi, the local police is reported to have lodged over 100 FIRs against AAP workers.