UP: Two held, jail warder among two booked for ‘cheering’ Pakistan’s win

On Tuesday, an FIR was lodged against three engineering students from Kashmir at Agra who were also rusticated from their college for allegedly sharing WhatsApp messages following Pakistan’s win. The three students were arrested on Wednesday.

Most of the FIRs were registered on complaints lodged by members of Hindu Jagran Manch and BJP. (Representative Image)

3 min readLucknowOct 28, 2021 06:12 AM IST First published on: Oct 28, 2021 at 06:12 AM IST

A day after three Kashmiri students of an engineering college in Agra were booked for allegedly cheering Pakistan during Sunday’s T20 World Cup match, two more persons, including a 25-year-old jail warder in Bareilly, have been booked and two others arrested for their messages and posts on social media “favouring Pakistan”.

Most of the FIRs were registered on complaints lodged by members of Hindu Jagran Manch and BJP.

Badaun police arrested 19-year-old labourer Mohammad Niyaz on charges of sedition for his Facebook posts.

Station House Officer of Faizganj Dehat in Badaun, Suresh Chandra, said the complaint against Niyaz was filed by Hindu Jagran Manch member Puneet Kumar in which he had alleged that the 19-year-old had posted controversial comments on Facebook supporting Pakistan over the win in the cricket match. The Hindu Jagran Manch member had alleged that Niyaz had uploaded a photograph of Pakistan’s flag on Facebook.

Read | Cheering Pakistan’s T20 win against India: UAPA in Srinagar, FIR in Agra, a sacking in Udaipur

“On the basis of Puneet Kumar’s complaint, an FIR has been lodged against Mohammad Niyaz under IPC section 124 A (sedition),” the SHO said.

SSP (Badaun) Om Prakash Singh confirmed that Niyaz has been arrested.

In Sitapur, a youth named Musharraf was arrested for his WhatsApp status “favouring” Pakistan after the match. He has been booked under IPC section 507 (criminal intimidation by an anonymous communication).

Station House Officer of Rampur Mathura police station, Jitendra Ojha, said Musharraf has been arrested on charges of breach of peace.

Meanwhile, Bareilly police have lodged a case against jail warder Arsh Ali Malik under the Information Technology Act.

Senior Sub-Inspector of Izzat Nagar police station, Sudesh Kumar, said that Hindu Jagran Manch member Arun Kumar had lodged a complaint against Arsh Ali Malik for posting a status on his WhatsApp in favour of Pakistan.

Police have also invoked criminal intimidation and intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace against the jail warder after Kumar complained that Malik abused him on the phone when asked about his WhatsApp status.

Superintendent of Bareilly district jail, Vijay Vikram Singh, said that they have sought an explanation from Ali regarding his WhatsApp status. A detailed report along with the copy of the FIR is being sent to senior authorities for further action, Singh added.

One more person, identified as Ayan Khan, has been booked in Bareilly for allegedly posting controversial comments on his WhatsApp status regarding Pakistan’s win in the cricket match. Ayan Khan has been booked under Section 66 of the Information Technology Act based on a complaint filed by a BJP leader, said police.

On Tuesday, an FIR was lodged against three engineering students from Kashmir at Agra who were also rusticated from their college for allegedly sharing WhatsApp messages following Pakistan’s win. The three students were arrested on Wednesday.

The case was lodged under IPC Sections 153 A (promoting enmity between different groups), 505 (1) (B) (with intent to cause, or which is likely to cause, fear or alarm to the public, or to any section of the public), and 66-F of the IT Act.