India
Mohammed Zubair, Teesta Setalvad’s arrest: No action against hatred, violence spreaders, asks Mamata
New Delhi: The Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday said that no action is being taken against those who spread hatred and violence as she was speaking over the arrest of Journalist Mohammed Zubair and Teesta Setalvad.
Zubair was arrested by the Special Cell of Delhi police while Journalist and civil rights activist Teesta Setalvad was arrested by Ahmedabad police.
Setalvad is the secretary of Citizens for Justice and Peace, an organisation formed to advocate for the victims of 2002 Gujarat killings.
On Sunday, the Ahmedabad crime branch arrested activist Teesta Setalvad, a day after she was detained in Mumbai and shifted to Gujarat, in connection with a fresh case of forgery, criminal conspiracy and insulting criminal proceedings to cause injury registered against her.
A day earlier, the crime branch had arrested former Gujarat DGP Sreekumar and is in the process of getting a transfer warrant for ex-IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt’s custody in connection with the FIR lodged against them, said DCP (crime), Chaitanya Mandlik.
He said the crime branch will collect documents submitted by Setalvad, Sreekumar and Bhatt to the Commission of Inquiry, the Special Investigation Team (SIT), and courts regarding the 2002 communal riots cases as part of the investigation.
“The investigation is underway in this case and we are procuring documents that were submitted by the accused persons before the Commission of Inquiry, SIT (formed by the Supreme Court to investigate 2002 riots cases), and different courts…Affidavits and other documents are the main basis for the FIR, and we are trying to collect other documents as well,” he told reporters.
On Monday, the Delhi Police arrested Mohammed Zubair, the co-founder of fact-checking website Alt News, for allegedly hurting religious sentiments. He was arrested based on a complaint by a man who tagged the Delhi Police on Twitter.
Zubair has been charged under sections 153 (Wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) and 295A (Deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the Indian Penal Code.
Earlier on Monday, the West Bengal CM also hit out at BJP led Government of India over the Enforcement Directorate (ED)’s summons to Shiv Sena politician, Sanjay Raut over questioning on an alleged money laundering case.
“I heard that a Shiv Sena leader in Maharashtra has received summons from ED today. I heard that there is an attempt to attach his property as well. This is the BJP’s tactics. Whenever they want to harass any opposition leader or topple a state government, they just let loose the central agencies.
“It is being done everywhere. The CBI and the ED will haunt you if you speak the truth. The country or life cannot move on like this. Why all are threatened like this?” she said, in her address at a government function at Burdwan.
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