Maulana forgot who is in power, no one can hold system hostage: Adityanath on Bareilly violence
Lucknow (PTI): With a crackdown by Uttar Pradesh police after violence in Bareilly during protests related to the "I Love Muhammad" campaign, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday said his government has sent a firm message that disruptions to law and order will not be tolerated.
"Whenever there were festivals, there was some upheaval, but now rioters will be taught a lesson in the language they understand so that their future generations will also remember (not to indulge in such actions).
"Sometimes people are not able to shun their bad habits easily. For that,
denting-painting are required... You saw this in Bareilly yesterday. A Maulana forgot who is in power," Adityanath said, without taking any names.
The comments, made while speaking at a 'Viksit UP' event of a media house, appear to be directed at cleric Tauqeer Raza Khan, the chief of the Ittehad-e-Millat Council, who had initially called for a protest in support of the "I Love Muhammad" campaign and was arrested on Saturday for allegedly masterminding the violence.
"He thought he could halt the system by issuing threats whenever he wanted, but we made it clear that there would be neither a roadblock nor a curfew. However, you will be taught such a lesson that your future generations will never indulge in rioting," CM Adityanath said.
The chief minister questioned the intent behind the public gathering. "What kind of way is this to halt the system? This was the trend in UP before 2017, but after 2017, we have not allowed even a curfew."
He said such "barriers" in the state's development were dealt with aptly. "The story of Uttar Pradesh's development begins here."
He also defended bulldozer action against people booked in criminal cases. "There are people who incite sentiments based on caste, exploit people... we made the bulldozer for such people," the firebrand BJP leader said.
The chief minister's statement came as tension escalated in Bareilly after clashes between police and a large crowd of people carrying "I Love Muhammad" posters outside a mosque in the Kotwali area after Friday prayers. The crowd was reportedly angry over the last-minute cancellation of a proposed demonstration by Khan, who claimed that authorities had denied permission.
The police carried out overnight house-to-house raids to nab the culprits and arrested eight people, including Khan, who were on Saturday sent to judicial custody for two weeks.
They said over 500 people are being identified through various videos and CCTV footage in Bareilly.
District Magistrate Avinash Singh said that Section 163 of the BNSS (power to issue order in urgent cases of nuisance or apprehended danger) was in effect, requiring written permission for any march or demonstration. Despite this, some individuals took to the streets, attempting to disrupt peace, leading to strict police action and the detention of over two dozen people.
DIG Ajay Kumar Sahni said the clashes hinted at a "pre-planned conspiracy". He vowed to identify all perpetrators using video evidence and ensure "exemplary punishment" to deter any future repeat of such episodes.
The Uttar Pradesh government's Information Department had issued a statement condemning the Bareilly violence as a "well-planned conspiracy" aimed at creating a negative atmosphere in Western UP to "undermine the Noida International Trade Show" and prevent foreign investment, thereby thwarting the state's development efforts.
The controversy erupted on September 9, when police in Kanpur filed an FIR against 24 persons for allegedly installing boards with ‘I Love Muhammad’ written on them during an Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi procession on September 4. Some Hindu groups had objected to the installation of boards, calling it "deviation from tradition" and a "deliberate provocation".
Muslim groups objected to the FIR and soon protests spread to several Uttar Pradesh districts and to states like Uttarakhand and Karnataka.
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19-yr-old woman found hanging from tree in UP village; juvenile held
Lucknow/Pratapgarh (UP) (PTI): Police have apprehended a 16-year-old boy for his alleged involvement in the rape and murder of a 19-year-old woman whose body was found hanging from a tree in a village here, officials said on Monday.
Additional Superintendent of Police (West), Brijnandan Rai, said that the body of a 19-year-old woman was found hanging from a tree in an orchard in the Manikpur police station area on Sunday morning. A post-mortem examination subsequently confirmed that she had been raped.
Police registered a case against unidentified persons under sections 103(1) (punishment for murder) and 70(1) (gangrape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and initiated an investigation.
During the course of the investigation, the police found that the deceased was in contact with a juvenile who was also her relative.
Acting on this information, during a joint checking operation, sub-inspector Amit Kumar Singh of Manikpur police station and SOG In-charge Amit Kumar Chaurasia, along with their team, apprehended the 16-year-old near the Lehdari Ganga River bridge.
The search for other accused persons is ongoing, police said.
According to the police, the woman had gone to sleep after dinner on Saturday night but was found hanging in an orchard nearly 400 metres away from her home the following morning.
Additional Superintendent of Police (West), Brijnandan Rai, had earlier said that the circumstances suggest foul play.
"The victim's slippers and undergarments were recovered 50 metres away from the spot where the body was found. There are visible injury marks on her body," Rai said.
While locals have alleged that the woman was murdered after being raped, the ASP said that it is "prima facie a case of murder."
"Based on the complaint filed by the victim's brother, a case of murder has been registered against unidentified persons," the officer added.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, in a post on X in Hindi on Monday, said, "The news of the heinous murder of a Dalit daughter in Pratapgarh is deeply tragic and condemnable."
"The question remains: why does the spate of murders of 'PDA daughters' continue unabated in Uttar Pradesh? Are the BJP government's claims regarding women's safety merely hollow rhetoric, or is there, in fact, discrimination even in the provision of security for women?" he said.
"Whenever the 'wandering Honourable (ghumantu maananiye)' finds a moment of respite from election campaigning, he should cast a glance at the plight of the daughters of his own Uttar Pradesh. In any case, apart from injustice and oppression, no sister, daughter, or mother of this state holds any hope from you," Yadav added.
