Crime Today News
More than 300 residents of Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar district have been served notices by authorities asking them to appear before a magistrate and furnish a bond of Rs 2 lakh each after they allegedly wore black armbands to protest the Waqf Amendment Bill, The Times of India reported on Saturday.
The residents had allegedly worn the black bands during prayers held on Alvida Jummah, or the last Friday of the Islamic holy month of Ramzan, on March 28.
An unidentified participant told The Times of India that it was a “only silent protest – without sloganeering or posters – and such a step [issuing notices] was unfair”.
A waqf is a property dedicated to a religious, educational or charitable cause under Islamic law. Each state has a waqf board led by a legal entity that is vested with the power to acquire, hold and transfer property.
The 2024 Waqf Amendment Bill proposed amendments to 44 sections of the 1995 Waqf Act, including allowing non-Muslims on waqf boards, restricting property donations and changing how waqf tribunals function.
On Saturday, President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent to the Waqf Bill, turning it into a law. It was passed in the Rajya Sabha on Friday, and in the Lok Sabha at around 2 am on Thursday.
Some of the persons who had participated in the protest received the notices on Thursday at their doorsteps, while others got them through the messaging application WhatsApp from station house officers of the police stations in their areas.
They were issued by City Magistrate Vikas Kashyap based on a police report, according to PTI.
“In future, they can disturb peace by inciting the general public,” The Times of India quoted the notice as stating. “The city magistrate directs you to appear in court at 10 am on April 16 and show cause why a bond of Rs 2 lakh should not be submitted to maintain peace within this jurisdiction for a year.”
The protest was called by the All India Muslim Personal Law Board, according to The Times of India.
Satyanarayan Prajapat, Muzaffarnagar superintendent of police, said that the notices were served to about 300 persons “identified as potential disruptors of public peace” under Sections 126 and 135 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita “in order to maintain law and order”.
While Section 126 is related to security for keeping peace, Section 135 pertains to the procedure for magistrates to investigate the truth of information related to potential offences.
Prajapat added that the persons had been directed to furnish sureties as a “preventive and routine measure”.
Participants of the protest were identified using CCTV footage and local intelligence, The Times of India quoted unidentified police officers as saying.
“The Friday Alvida prayers in the district passed off peacefully,” the newspaper quoted Prajapat as saying. “However, authorities continue to monitor the situation closely, and are in regular touch with religious leaders so that harmony is maintained in the district.”
Another participant at the protest named Mohammad Shibli said that the black armbands were worn as per the call given by the All India Muslim Personal Law Board. “We were wearing ribbons while entering the mosque, and then silently went back home,” the newspaper quoted him as saying. “How can they call us disruptors of peace.”
📰 Crime Today News is proudly sponsored by DRYFRUIT & CO – A Brand by eFabby Global LLC
Design & Developed by Yes Mom Hosting
