• Source:JND
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In a latest development in Aligarh’s ‘I Love Muhammad’ Row, the police have arrested four youths- Jishant Kumar, Akash Kumar, Dilip Kumar, and Abhishek Sarswat after a major twist in the case was unravelled. The arrested accused allegedly attempted to falsely implicate Muslim neighbours over a property dispute.

Aligarh SSP Neeraj  Singh Jadaon, who had reached the scene amidst a brewing communal storm, gathered information from people like Jishant, who had himself become a police informant. Four youths have been arrested, while one youth, named Rahul, is currently absconding. 

How Did The Incident Start?

The incident began at the temple of Bulakgarhi, located outside the village and on the road to Bhagwanpur, according to Jagran.com. When the culprits reached Bhagwanpur, Dilip was assigned to monitor the streets. Dilip kept watching the streets to ensure no one in the village saw them. It took them an hour and a half to write "I love Muhammad" in both villages. However, the plan was foiled when the police scanned nearby CCTV cameras, where Jishant was seen riding a bike near the scene of the incident.

The police's suspicion fell on him. They first picked up Zeeshanth. He told the police that he was traveling for work. He often does this. He also said that he was in the village the day after the incident and accompanied the police. He even spoke with the Captain. Why would he do such a thing?

But the police did not give up their pursuit and started searching for Dilip, who had disappeared from the village on October 26th. Dilip first went to Ghaziabad and then fled to Haryana, staying in a hotel there. When Dilip was caught, he broke down and revealed the entire truth, thereby revealing the entire plan to the police.

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Misspelled Spelling Of ‘Muhammad’ 

According to the police, a complaint was filed by a member of a right-wing organisation which purposefully name Muslim men. “Police rushed to the spot with senior officers, erased the graffiti, and calmed the crowd. A case was then registered against Maulvi Mustaqeem, Gul Mohammad, Suleman, Sonu, Allabaksh, Hasan, Hamid and Yusuf,” SSP Jadon said, quoted the Times of India.

However, the police soon noticed that something was fishy in the entire matter. The slogans written on the temples were all misspelled, with the spelling of ‘Muhammad’ written as ‘Muhmad’. The slogan didn’t match the way ‘I love Muhammad’ had appeared on banners during protests in Bareilly in September.

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That mistake led the investigators directly to the culprits. Police teams used technical surveillance, including CCTV footage and call detail records, along with field intelligence, to track down the actual culprits. A case under the BNS sections, including 299, deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings, was registered against all the men arrested. 

SSP Jadon said the police have found links to some past property disputes between the men and the Muslim men whom they had tried to incriminate. “In Jan 2024, there was a clash involving Gul Mohammad’s and Mukesh’s families,” said a senior officer. “Around 15 people were charge-sheeted in that case. In Sept, Mustaqeem and Jeeshan were injured in a violent altercation. Both sides filed cross-cases,” he added.

Police said Rahul, who is absconding, is the son of the man involved in a property dispute with Gul Mohammad over a house in Bhagwanpur, located next to one of the temples that was defaced.

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