A social worker and former leader of the Samajwadi Party was arrested on Friday for allegedly announcing a bounty on the head of Pulakeshinagar Congress MLA Akhanda Srinivas Murthy’s nephew P Naveen.
Media reports stated that the Shahazeb Rizvi, a resident of Rasoolpur village in Phalwada town of Meerut, had circulated a video on WhatsApp, where he purportedly announced a bounty of Rs 51 lakh on the head of P Naveen for putting up the Facebook comment, which hurt religious sentiments. He was arrested after the video went viral.
“The sentiments of the Muslim community have been hurt due to the social media post of Congress MLA’s nephew. Whoever will get me the head of his nephew, will get Rs 51 lakh in return. The money will be collected with the help of the people who support me in the cause,” Rizvi can be heard saying in the video, according to the Times of India.
According to The Hindu, Avinash Pandey, Superintendent of Police (Rural), Meerut, told the media that Shahazeb Rizvi was booked under sections 153A (promoting enmity between religious groups) and 505(2) (intent to incite one community against the other) of the Indian Penal Code.
TOI reported that Rizvi could be heard making an appeal to people for contributing to the bounty money. The report stated that Shahazeb Rizvi was formerly associated with the minority cell of the Samajwadi Party (SP) and also contested the zilla panchayat elections on an SP ticket.
The National Commission for Scheduled Castes has written to the Meerut police that the sections invoked against Shahazb Rizvi are weak and has demanded that he also be booked under relevant sections of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989.
The violence in Bengaluru allegedly began after P Naveen, nephew of Congress MLA Akhanda Srinivas Murthy, put up a comment on Facebook that was derogatory towards Prophet Muhammed. Huge mobs gathered at DJ Halli and KG Halli and vandalised the police stations.
The under-construction building adjacent to Srinivas Murthy’s residence was set on fire and Naveen’s home was also vandalised. The Bengaluru police have so far arrested 206 people in connection with the riot, including the husband of BBMP corporator from Nagawara, Kaleem Pasha.
(Published in an arrangement with The News Minute.)
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