New Delhi (PTI): The Vishva Hindu Parishad on Wednesday disassociated itself from cow vigilante Bittu Bajrangi arrested in connection with the communal clashes in Haryana's Nuh district.
"Raj Kumar alias Bittu Bajrangi, who is said to be a Bajrang Dal worker, has never had any relation with Bajrang Dal. The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) also does not consider the content of the video allegedly released by him to be appropriate," the right-wing outfit said in a statement.
Bajrang Dal is the youth wing of the VHP.
Bajrangi was arrested on Tuesday in connection with the communal clashes that erupted in Nuh on July 31, police said.
He was questioned in connection with a fresh FIR registered against him and 15-20 others at Nuh's Sadar Police Station based on a complaint filed by Assistant Superintendent of Police Usha Kundu.
Police said Bajrangi, the president of an outfit called the Goraksha Bajrang Force, was initially detained by a Crime Investigation Agency team of Tauru from Faridabad and taken for questioning.
A spokesperson of Nuh Police later said he had been arrested and would be produced in a city court on Wednesday.
The FIR against Bajrangi and the others has been registered under Indian Penal Code sections 148 (riots), 149 (unlawful assembly), 332 (causing hurt), 353, 186 (obstructing a public servant from discharging duty), 395, 397 (armed robbery), and 506 (criminal intimidation) and provisions of the Arms Act, police said.
A senior police officer said Bajrangi and his associates wielded illegal weapons during the VHP procession that came under attack in Muslim-majority Nuh on July 31.
Six people, including two home guards and a cleric, died in the clashes that also spread to nearby regions.
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Varanasi (UP), Dec 5: Amid escalating tensions at the Uday Pratap College here over a mosque located on its premises, police on Thursday restricted outsiders' entry to the campus, allowing only students with valid identity cards.
The move follows Tuesday's unrest after students recited Hanuman Chalisa when namaz was being offered near the mosque. Seven men were briefly detained after the row on Tuesday, according to the local police.
Student leader Vivekanand Singh on Thursday said, "Police personnel are stationed at the college gate, checking identity cards to ensure that no outsiders enter the campus. A group of students is also monitoring the gate."
He added that no one came to offer namaz on Thursday and that additional precautions will be taken on Friday during the "Jumma" prayers.
In a related development, students of the college have formed a "student court" and sent an 11-point letter to the Uttar Pradesh Waqf Board, demanding a response within 15 days regarding the status of the mosque and its ownership.
Separately, Mohammad Yaseen, joint secretary of the Anjuman Intezamia Masjid Committee, said he wrote to the Uttar Pradesh Central Waqt Board to check the status of the mosque on Tuesday itself.
"The Uttar Pradesh Central Waqf Board has clarified that its 2018 notice claiming the mosque as Waqf property was cancelled on January 18, 2021. There is no reason for the current controversy," Yaseen claimed.
The tensions arose after students protested against "outsiders" offering prayers at the mosque, citing concerns about unauthorised entry into the college campus.
A local official said the college management had reached out to the administration, seeking verification of the entrants to the campus and that police have since been vigilant to prevent further disruptions.