Bareilly: Heightened security, heavy police patrolling and flag marches to restore normalcy – these were scenes from Bareilly on Sunday, a day after 39 people, including local cleric Tauqeer Raza Khan, were arrested following overnight house-to-house raids in connection with the recent violence during a protest supporting the ‘I love Muhammad’ campaign.
The cleric’s arrest on Saturday prompted administrations in neighbouring districts to go on high alert.
Raza’s arrest followed a day of tension in Bareilly, where a large crowd carrying ‘I Love Muhammad’ posters clashed with police outside a mosque in the Kotwali area after Friday prayers. The crowd was reportedly angry over the cancellation of a proposed demonstration called by Raza, the founder of Ittehad-e-Millat Council, who claimed the authorities denied permission for it.
Ten cases have been filed against 180 named and 2,500 unidentified “rioters”, including Raza, under various sections for inciting violence, vandalism, rioting, stone-pelting and hurting religious sentiments at various police stations across the city, including Kotwali, Premnagar, Baradari, Cantt, and Quila, officials said.
Overnight house-to-house raids were carried out to nab the culprits, they said.
The neighbouring districts, including Rampur, Pilibhit, Shahjahanpur, Moradabad, Badaun, Sambhal, Bijnor, Amroha, and Fatehgarh, have been put on high alert by their administrations, starting Sunday.
These districts reportedly house a large number of Raza’s supporters.
Bareilly itself remains an effective garrison, with internet services suspended for 48 hours and the area around the highly sensitive Dargah-e-Ala Hazrat turned into a security fortress.
Senior officials, including ADG Ramit Sharma, Divisional Commissioner Bhupendra S. Chaudhary, DIG Ajay Sahni, DM Avinash Singh, SSP Anurag Arya, SP City Manush Pareek, and SP South Anshika Verma, visited the highly sensitive zones on Sunday to closely monitor law and order and security arrangements.
Special police teams are working to arrest the remaining “rioters” involved in the clashes, the officials said.
On Saturday night, SP City Manush Pareek led a targeted drive to arrest individuals involved in stone-pelting and firing. Strict interrogation of those detained is ongoing, they said.
They said that the police are currently maintaining full vigilance on all possible scenarios.
The massive crackdown follows Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s strong warning that those inciting violence in the name of faith will face severe consequences.
“The main conspirator of the Bareilly unrest, Maulana Tauqeer Raza, along with seven others, have been arrested, produced in court, and sent to a 14-day judicial custody,” District Magistrate Avinash Singh said while addressing a press conference along with Senior Superintendent of Police Anurag Arya on Saturday.
The seven other accused have been identified as Sarfaraz, Manifuddin, Azeem Ahmed, Mohammed Sharif, Mohammed Aamir, Rehan and Mohammad Sarfaraz, police said.
“The police arrested 39 rioters from Friday night to Saturday,” Arya said.
Raza and the seven co-accused were produced in court on Saturday and sent to 14 days of judicial custody, with Raza later shifted to Fatehgarh Central Jail.
