Madrasa teacher arrested for distributing books hurting Hindu religious sentiments at Magh Mela in UP

Prayagraj (UP), Jan 18: Three people have been arrested for allegedly selling books that misrepresented religious verses to denigrate Hinduism at Magh Mela in Prayagraj, police said on Tuesday. It is being alleged that the three accused were part of a religious conversion racket.

The accused had also distributed objectionable books for free, at other Hindu religious places including Kashi Vishwanath Temple and Assi Ghat in Varanasi, Hanuman temple at Prayagraj.

The accused has been identified as Mahmood Hasan Ghazi, Mohd Monish alias Ashish Kumar Gupta and Sameer alias Naresh Kumar Saroj, were arrested on Monday, Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Satish Chandra claimed.

Ghazi is the main accused and also a teacher at the Islamia Imdadia Madrasa that falls under the Puramufti police station limits, police claimed. He was found misrepresenting verses from the Vedas and getting them printed in books to project the Hindu religion in a bad light while talking highly of Islam, police said as reported by PTI.

Satish Chandra claimed that Ghazi got the books printed and used to sell them through poor boys after luring them with money. During interrogation, Ghazi confessed that he used to get funding from Abu Dhabi via a local person in Shahganj area, for religious conversion.

Mohammad Monish and Sameer used to note down the names, addresses and mobile numbers of the people who bought the books so that they could be contacted and attracted towards Islam and converted, the police claimed.

It is being alleged that the three accused were part of a religious conversion racket.

Both Mohammed Monish and Sameer alias Naresh Kumar were the first Hindus to get converted, Chandra claimed.

The police have recovered 204 suspected religious books, , 3 mobiles, 4 aadhaar cards, a diary and a cart used for selling them, officials claimed.

An FIR has been lodged against them under different sections of the IPC and Section 3/5 the Prohibition Of Unlawful Conversion Of Religion Act, 2021 at the Daraganj police station, Chandra added.

The Prayagraj Police made the arrests after a BJP MP tweeted about objectionable literature being distributed in the Magh Mela.