Lucknow: Police have allegedly arrested the founder of a Delhi-based social organisation Khudai Khidmatgar a day after he was booked along with three others for allegedly offering nimaz at Nand Baba temple in Barasana in Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh state.
The Khudai Khidmatgar organisation head identified as Faisal Khan was arrested in Delhi and handed over to Uttar Pradesh police, reports said.
On Sunday, the UP police had filed an FIR against four persons – Faisal Khan, Chand Mohammad, Alok Ratan, and Nilesh Gupta — at Barsana police station in Mathura after photographs of two of them offering namaz in the courtyard of the temple on October 29 went viral on social media.
Later, on a complaint by the temple caretaker identified as Mukesh Goswami, an FIR was lodged at Barsana police station in Mathura on Sunday night and four persons were booked for “promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, defiling a place of worship and public mischief”, reports claimed.
“We have been informed that on October 29, four persons came from Delhi. Two of them were Muslims. The Muslim youths offered afternoon nimaz inside the temple. On Sunday, some shared photos on Facebook calling it an act of harmony. The temple staff lodged a complaint and an FIR has been registered,” The Indian Express quoted Gaurav Grover SSP Mathura as having said.
Responding to the allegations, the Khudai Khidmatgar spokesperson Pawan Yadav has said that few of the staff men allowed the youths to offer nimaz. However, the temple authorities have denied the claims of allowing any Muslim youth for offering the nimaz inside temple.
In this regard, Pawan Yadav added that Faisal Khan has also offered an apology if his actions have harmed the religious sentiments.
It was also claimed by the temple caretaker that Khan had “claimed to be a Hindu and recited several shlokas from religious texts” on the day they visited the temple.
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