Fourteen people were apprehended on Wednesday for reportedly abusing interfaith couples and uploading their videos on social media. Five out of the 14 were arrested and nine detained for interrogation, claimed a news website citing a release by the Vadodara police.
Earlier, the police arrested three people in Vadodara for targeting interfaith couples.
According to an initial probe, 500 people were part of a WhatsApp group named ‘Hussaini Army’ to indulge in moral policing, which could split religious groups, the release said.
Given the delicate nature of the case, Vadodara police chief Anupam Singh Gehlot handed over the probe to the crime branch, the news site added.
The arrested, Aqib Ali Saiyed, Mohsin Pathan, Noman Shaikh, Abrar Khan and Moin Shaikh, all from Vadodara city, were members of a WhatsApp community, Army of Mahdi. It was created by those who formed the earlier Hussaini Army group, which was deleted.
Later, they created another group named ‘Lashkar-E-Adam’ which had 254 members, Gehlot confirmed.
Three administrators connected with one of the groups, Mustakim Sheikh, Burhan Saiyad and Sahil Sheikh, were arrested on August 28.
“They aimed to keep a watch on women of their faith if they were seen with men from other faiths. Members used to track the couple’s movements using their vehicle number and pass on that information to other members who live in the area from where the couple would pass,” Gehlot said.
“After intercepting the couple, they would thrash them in the name of moral policing and make their video viral. They would call the woman’s parents to blackmail them (to force the woman to end the relationship). Such groups were also active in Anand, Ahmedabad and Bhavnagar districts.”
The police have registered a first information report (FIR) against the arrested under Indian Penal Code sections, including 153A (promoting enmity between different groups), 505 (making statements conducing to public mischief) and 201 (destruction of evidence).
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