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SP MP Ziaur Rehman Barq appears before judicial commission over Sambhal violence

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New Delhi, April 16: Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Ziaur Rehman Barq on Wednesday appeared before the three-member judicial commission in Lucknow, which is probing the violence that erupted in UP’s Sambhal on November 24, last year.

The violence took place during a court-mandated ASI survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid, and Barq has been accused of delivering an inflammatory speech that allegedly incited unrest.

Speaking ahead of his appearance, Barq maintained his innocence and expressed faith in the judiciary.

“Today, I am appearing before the committee. I hope we will get justice,” the SP MP said. “I will answer the questions they will ask. And I am going with the hope that we will get justice,” he added.

Barq has consistently denied the allegations, calling them unfounded and politically motivated.

Former high court judge Justice DK Arora, former chief secretary Amit Mohan Prasad and ex-DGP Arvind Kumar Jain are the members of judicial commission, constituted by the state government on November 28, last year.

Barq had previously appeared before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) on April 8 in connection with the same case.

The judicial commission is currently recording statements from key individuals to determine the causes of the unrest and the roles, if any, played by public representatives.

The commission is also expected to record statements of Jama Masjid managing committee chairman Zafar Ali, currently lodged in Moradabad prison. He was arrested by the Sambhal police for allegedly orchestrating violence in the district during ASI survey of the mosque.

The incident in question dates back to November 24, 2023, when clashes broke out during a survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid. Several individuals were booked in connection with the violence.

Crime

Mumbai: Man Arrested At Airport For Derogatory Social Media Posts On Bhagavad Gita & Women

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Mumbai: Mangaluru City Police have arrested a Mumbai native accused of uploading social media posts that promoted feelings of enmity or hatred in 2024.

The accused, who was working in Saudi Arabia, was arrested at Mumbai Airport based on a Look Out Circular (LOC).

The accused, Felix Edward Mathais (aged 56), is alleged to have circulated derogatory posts about the Bhagavad Gita and women in February 2024.

A case was registered against him at the Kankanady City Police Station under sections 153(A), 504, 507, 509 of the IPC and Section 66(D) of the IT Act.

At the time the case was filed, Mathais was in Saudi Arabia for employment, which prevented his arrest. The accused, originally from Charkop, Mumbai, was the subject of an LOC issued by the police following information gathered about his overseas employment.

The accused landed at Mumbai Airport from abroad. Immigration officials detained him and informed the Mangaluru Police. Subsequently, he was arrested at the Airport on December 5, 2025.

He was brought to Mangaluru for investigation and produced before the Court. A report has been submitted to the court requesting the confiscation of his passport.

Another accused in the case, Evigin John D’Souza (aged 57), was previously arrested on August 11, 2024, and produced before the court.

The investigation into the case is ongoing.

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Crime

Palghar Crime: 40-Year-Old Constable Arrested For Allegedly Raping Woman Inside Kasa Police Station

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Palghar, Maharashtra, Dec 08: A 40-year-old police constable has been arrested for allegedly raping a woman inside the Kasa police station in Maharashtra’s Palghar district, officials said on Monday.

According to a senior official from the Palghar rural police, the incident took place last week when the woman had visited the station to record her statement in connection with an ongoing case. The constable allegedly assaulted her within the premises.

Following a complaint filed by the woman, a case of rape was registered and the constable was arrested on Sunday, officials confirmed.

In the aftermath of the incident, the in-charge of the Kasa police station has been transferred. Further investigation is underway.

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Crime

Mumbai ANC Detains Repeat Drug Offender For One Year Under Rare PIT-NDPS Action

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Mumbai: In a major preventive action against repeat drug offenders, the Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) of the Mumbai Crime Branch has arrested a 29-year-old drug trafficker under the Prevention of Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (PIT-NDPS) Act, lodging him in Kolhapur Central Jail for one year.

The accused has been identified as Surajkumar Ramvilas Prajapati (29), a resident of Albert Compound, Vasari Hill, Shankar Nagar, near Rustamjee Tower, Goregaon (West).

While preventive detention of habitual offenders during election seasons is common to avoid threats to law and order, such detentions typically last only a few days and the individuals are released after polling.

However, in a rare and unprecedented move, the Mumbai Police have detained Prajapati for an entire year and shifted him to Kalamba Central Jail, Kolhapur.

The action was taken under the stringent PIT-NDPS Act, 1988, a provision invoked only in exceptional cases to isolate habitual offenders from society.

A senior Mumbai Police officer said a similar action under the PIT-NDPS Act was previously taken against Iqbal Memon alias Iqbal Mirchi, Dawood Ibrahim’s key drug handler. After Mirchi, this is considered the second major preventive detention under the Act in recent years.

According to police, Prajapati has seven ganja trafficking cases registered against him:

Four cases at Malad Police Station

One case at Goregaon Police Station

Two cases with the Kandivali Unit of the ANC

He was recently granted bail in the Kandivali Unit case, but investigations revealed he continued operating in narcotics trafficking despite multiple bail orders.

Given the ongoing threat posed by the accused and his repeated return to drug peddling, the ANC submitted a proposal to detain him under the PIT-NDPS Act to the Competent Authority Principal Secretary (Special), Home Department, Government of Maharashtra.
The proposal was approved, and an official detention order was issued.

Following the approval, Prajapati was taken into custody and on December 6, 2025, lodged in Kalamba Central Prison, Kolhapur, for preventive detention of one year.

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