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A day after he was arrested, the Muslim cleric from Gujarat, who offered Narendra Modi a skull cap three years ago, was Wednesday sent to judicial custody till October 2. Sufi Imam Mehdi Hasan, who was arrested for his remarks on Navratri festival, was assaulted by a youth outside Thasra court in Kheda district, where he was produced by the local police.
Hasan was sent to judicial custody after he refused to apply for bail and told the court, “Khuda mera insaf karega (The Almighty will do justice to me).” The cleric was arrested Tuesday for allegedly describing garba as entertainment for the doers of “demonic deeds”.
He came into the spotlight in September 2011 when he offered Narendra Modi, the then chief minister, a skull cap, while greeting him on the Sadbhavana fast. Modi had refused to wear the cap.
Eyewitnesses said that when Hasan was brought in a police van, the court premises bristled with agitated people. The moment Hasan got out of the van, a person, later identified as Rakesh R Patel, slapped him, pushing the cleric to the ground. The police escorting Hasan soon got hold of the attacker. In no time, the video grabs of the incident went viral.
“The man leapt towards Hasan and beat him up. We immediately took preventive measures,” said Kheda District SP Sachin Badshah.
After the incident, the cleric was produced before Judge P V Bhatt, who sent him to 14-day judicial custody. He refused to hire any lawyer to defend himself. In the meantime, Thasra police arrested Rakesh Patel, a resident of Nadiad, and lodged an FIR.
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