A court in Bareilly has rejected the bail pleas of Ittehad-e-Millat Council (IMC) chief Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan and five others arrested for allegedly attacking police personnel during the September 26 violence over the “I Love Mohammad” posters controversy.
According to Additional District Government Counsel (ADGC) Mahesh Pathak, Raza had urged members of the Muslim community to gather at Islamia Maidan on the day of the incident despite prohibitory orders being in place. When police tried to disperse the crowd, violence erupted and a mob reportedly pelted stones at security forces.
“The rioters also snatched a rifle from the gunner of the Superintendent of Police (City) and a wireless set from a police jeep,” Pathak told PTI.
Ten FIRs were registered across the Kotwali, Baradari, Premnagar, Cantt, and Qila police stations, naming over 125 people and more than 2,500 unidentified individuals.
Raza’s bail plea was filed in connection with the Baradari police station case, which pertains to violence in the Shyamganj area. The application was heard by Additional District and Sessions Judge Amrita Shukla, who dismissed the bail pleas of Raza and five others incuding Faizan Sakalani, Takim, Munir Idrishi (all from Bareilly), and Harman and Nematullah (residents of Bihar’s Purnea district).
Raza has been in custody since September 27, a day after the violence broke out during a gathering of his supporters. Police allege that the crowd turned violent and attacked officers.
He is currently lodged in Fatehgarh Jail, while the other accused are held in Bareilly Jail.
The IMC leader has been named in all ten FIRs, and investigators later added his name to the remaining three cases after initial inquiries. Raza also faces charges in previous cases related to the 2019 anti-CAA-NRC protests.
