Six activists of the Hindu Raksha Dal were arrested by the police on suspicion of distributing swords in the colony of Shalimar Garden in Ghaziabad, a senior police officer said. The arrests are included in a broader crackdown on the organisation after the reports about the distribution of weapons and provocative actions in the region.
The police state that the six people who have been arrested are of 17 office bearers of the Hindu Raksha Dal who have been listed as those accused of the case. The president of the group, Bhupendra Chowdhry, or Pinki, is also an accused in the FIR but is in the run. More than 20 unidentified members of the organisation have also been arrested, added deputy police department Trans Hindon Nimish Patil.
The case has been filed under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, such as, under Section 191(2) of the Rioting, under 191(3) of the Rioting with deadly weapons, and under 127(2) of the Wrongful confinement. According to the police, the accused reportedly led out a procession in the colony, hoisted up pro-Hindu and anti-Muslim slogans, and walked door-to-door giving swords and other weapons away.
After the incident, the police groups have been carrying out raids on different places to track down remaining accused. We are not going to enable any organisation to disrupt communal peace and order. More arrests of all the accused, both named and unnamed, will soon follow, at present the accused are hiding in evading arrest, DCP Patil said.
In the meantime, Bhupendra Chowdhry gave a video message purporting that hundreds of weapons had been handed out. He caused some controversial statements in the video, claiming that he was threatening the Hindu community and was right to arm the civilians. The police officials added that it is under investigation to identify the video, and that it is one of the investigations that are underway.
The security has been intensified in the region and the government reiterated that anyone trying to promote violence will be dealt with in strict measures.
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