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MP: 4 Muslim Men Arrested in Balaghat for Protest Against Yati Narsinghanand’s Remarks

Kashif Kakvi |
The Dasna temple head priest had recently made alleged inflammatory remarks against Prophet Mohammad at an event in Delhi.
4 Muslim Men Arrested in Bhopal for Protest Against Yati Narsinghanand

Bhopal: Protesting against Uttar Pradesh’s Dasna Devi temple’s head priest Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati, who has recently made controversial remarks on Prophet Mohammad in Delhi, has landed four Muslim men in Madhya Pradesh’s Balaghat police’s Kotwali police station jail on Friday.

The Kotwali police arrested Mateen Ajhari, Kasim Khan, Sohaib Khan and Raza Khan of Balaghat for pasting posters on Narsinghanand Saraswati on Jama Masjid Road in the city to register their protest against the Dasna temple priest for hurting religious sentiments by making alleged inflammatory remarks. 

Police booked all the four, accusing them for hurting religious sentiments and disturbing communal harmony. The arrests were made following a complaint filed by the members of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal under Sections 153-A, 295-A and 34 of the Indian Penal Code.

In the FIR (first information report), the complainant Rameshwar Rana, district in-charge of Bajrang Dal, alleged that at around 11: 30 a.m when he, along with his friends Durgesh Sharma, Mukesh Kuril, Raj Vyas and Sandeep Nainvani, was heading to the market to buy vegetables, they spotted a few Muslim men on the road alongside Jama Masjid in Balaghat gluing the posters of our respected saint Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati and were hitting those with shoes. He further alleged that the accused men were also hurling abuses.    

Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati , head priest of Dasna Devi Temple in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad, had reportedly made inflammatory remarks against Prophet Mohammad and Islam during a press conference on April 1 in Delhi. His video of his controversial remarks went viral and drew huge criticism and protests from various quarters of the society. The Delhi Police also lodged an FIR against him for allegedly hurting religious sentiments and summoned him to join the probe.

Speaking to the media, Durgesh Sharma, member of Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Balaghat, said: "Some anti-social elements had stuck our respected saint Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati's posters on the road and everyone was walking on it, unspeakable words were written on it too, this has deeply hurt our religious sentiments. This is why we have gotten an FIR registered against these anti-social elements." 

Sharma said that a few anti-social elements were trying to disrupt communal peace of the district which was being strongly opposed by Hindu outfits like VHP and Bajrang Dal.

Confirming the arrests, Mansharam Romde, Town Inspector of Kotwali police station, said that an FIR had been registered and subsequently four men had been arrested.

Meanwhile, a delegation of political party, All India All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen  or AIMIM met Balaghat superintendent of police on Friday and handed over an application, urging him to register FIR  against Narsinghanand Saraswati for” hurting religious sentiments.”

When contacted, Nazim Khan, AIMIM district chief, said: “It seems that the right to peaceful protest has been turned down by the state Government. People often burn effigies, hit it with slippers to register their protest against anyone, including the Prime Minister, but no action has ever been taken. But, in this case, instead of taking action on our complaint against Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati for hurting religious sentiments, the police arrested four men for putting up posters."

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