One man and the brother of another were assaulted by a mob in Bhiwandi area of Thane city over social media posts in support of suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma. The two men who made the posts were later arrested by the police. In the first case, 20-year-old Saad Ashfaq Ansari, a resident of Bhiwandi, was assaulted by a mob on Sunday after his social media post supporting Nupur Sharma went viral. Ansari has been booked under Section 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth and residence) of the Indian Penal Code. According to police, a mob gathered outside Ansari’s house, and when he came outside, forced him to read the Kalima (Islamic affirmation of faith). Ansari was also assaulted by members of the mob, police said. The police detained Ansari and later placed him under arrest based on a complaint lodged by a certain Faraz Fazal Bahaudding alias Baba. The Bhiwandi police also decided to take action against those who gathered in front of Ansari's house and assaulted him. Deputy Commissioner of Police (zone 2) Yogesh Chavan said, "We are in the process of registering an FIR against the mob in Ansari's case." The police said security in the area has been increased to prevent any untoward incident. In another incident on Sunday in Narpoli area of Bhiwandi, a man was assaulted by some persons in a mob comprising as many as 100 people after his brother, Mukesh Chavan, 22, a student of diploma in pharmacy, posted on a social media site in support of Sharma. After seeing the post, the mob gathered around Chavan's house and assaulted his brother, police said. The Narpoli police registered an FIR against Chavan and later arrested him for supporting Sharma and also registered an FIR against unidentified people for rioting, unlawful assembly and assault. The police in Bhiwandi had issued summons to Sharma on Saturday, asking her to appear before them.
