Kanpur Communal violence: Hoardings with pics of suspects to be put up

Kanpur Communal Violence: The Uttar Pradesh Police would put up hoardings carrying pictures of key suspects involved in the Kanpur violence at prominent places in and around the affected areas, officials said on Monday. The violence was triggered due to ex-BJP leader Nupur Sharma’s controversial statement on Prophet Muhammad. The hoardings will also have the contact numbers of Station House Officers and senior police officials so that people can pass on information about suspects to the police, they said. The police have also arrested nine more people in connection with the violence, taking the total number of those arrested to 38, officials said.

The violence broke out in Pared, Nai Sadak and Yateemkhana areas of the city on Friday when some people tried to force shopkeepers to down shutters over allegedly insulting remarks made by BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma against Prophet Mohammed during a TV debate, according to police.

"We have identified about 100 more stone-pelters and rioters through CCTV footage and video clips," said Anand Prakash Tiwari, Additional Commissioner of Police, Law and Order.

Search operations are underway and raids are also being conducted at all possible hideouts to arrest rioters at the earliest, he said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (East), Pramod Kumar, said "25 hoardings having photographs of about 20 key accused, who allegedly took part in the June 3 violence, will be put up at prominent places in and around the affected areas and neighbouring pockets."

It has been decided that contact numbers of the Station House Officers and senior police officials will also be provided and an appeal will be issued so that people can identify the suspects and pass on information to the police, the DCP added.

"We have gathered images of the accused persons through video clips, cameras and CCTV footage," the DCP said.

Besides, three more special teams with separate tasks have been formed to assist the Special Investigation Team headed by DCP (south) Sanjeev Tyagi, officials said.

The first special team, comprising four members and headed by Additional DCP (East) Rahul Mithas, has been formed to examine the CCTV footage, including government and private ones, and hand the footage to the SIT.

Another five-member special team headed by Assistant CP Swaroop Nagar and Brijnarain Singh has been asked to investigate a matter pertaining to a petrol pump giving away petrol in open bottles and containers.

The third special team headed by Assistant CP (Cantonment) will keep an eye on posts which are provocative and false on social media, including WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram and others.

They have also been asked to investigate social media posts of prime accused Hayat Zafar Hashmi, chief of Maulana Mohammed Ali (MMA) Jauhar Fans Association, and his associates, which went viral on social media.

Hashmi is suspected to be the mastermind of the violence and was arrested in the Hazratganj area of the state capital on Saturday, police said.