NEW DELHI, Aug 23: Three days after police booked 16 people for sedition, claiming they shouted “Pakistan zindabad” during a Muharram procession in Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, the Congress backed the organisers’ claim that police morphed the video. The police, however, refuted the claim.
On Monday, the Muharram procession organisers released video footage in which people could be heard shouting “Qazisahab zindabad.” The police, however, released a longer video of the same event in which the people could be seen and heard shouting both “Pakistan zindabad” and “Qazisahab zindabad”.
“The police morphed the video. No anti-national slogans were shouted by the people present there,” said Muzeeb Qazi, an organiser of the Muharram procession in Ujjain’s Geeta Colony.
Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Digvijay Singh said, “Police took action on a fake video clip. They should have verified the truth first. The case should be withdrawn.”
A Congress municipal councillor Maya Trivedi, who was reportedly present at the programme, said, “Nobody shouted anti-national slogans and the case was registered on the basis of a fake video.”
The Ujjain police released a 10-minute video in which people could be heard shouting both slogans. Ujjain superintendent of police Satyendra Shukla said, “We have taken action only on the basis of authentic video shot by police personnel and officers of district administration. We have no doubt on credibility as the incident happened at 10.12pm and we registered the case on the basis of video within half an hour.”
“We have submitted the 10-minute video to home department,” he said.
“Earlier too, such incidents were reported from the area and this time we recorded the procession,” he added.
Madhya Pradesh home minister Narottam Mishra said, “We don’t have any doubt about the video. Such anti-national and people inspired by Taliban mentality should be punished.”
His colleague and medical education minister Vishwas Sarang termed Digvijay Singh a Pakistani agent. “Why does Digvijay Singh always feel offended when it comes to Pakistan and anti-national activities? Congress is trying to create communal tension but we won’t allow them,” he said.
The Ujjain police on Friday booked 16 residents of Geeta Colony under sections 124 A (sedition), 153 B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 188 (violation of order duly promulgated by officer) of the Indian Penal Code.
Ten of them have been arrested.
District collector Ashish Singh invoked National Security Act (NSA) against four of them.
(Manas Dasgupta)