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Was fact-checker Zubair arrested for being evasive, uncooperative?

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Alt news’ co-founder Mohammed Zubair was arrested as he was not at all being cooperative with the police in the investigation of a case registered against him, a senior Delhi Police official said on Tuesday.

Zubair came into major limelight after he posted BJP’s now suspended spokesperson Nupur Sharma’s controversial comment on Prophet Mohammed. He was arrested on Monday for his objectionable tweets which he posted in 2018.

After his arrest, the police said he was not cooperating with the investigation. “We had served him a notice under section 41 A of the CrPc, but he was evasive and not cooperating in the investigation,” the official told IANS.

The official said that Zubair was “evasive on the questions” and neither provided the necessary technical equipment for the purpose of the investigation nor cooperated in the investigation.

“During investigation, the conduct of Mohammed Zubair was found questionable, which warranted his custodial interrogation to unravel the conspiracy in this matter,” the official added.

The section 41 A of the Code of Criminal Procedure deals with the notice of appearance before police officers.

Under this, the police officer shall, in all cases where the arrest of a person is not required, issue a notice directing the person against whom a reasonable complaint has been made, or credible information has been received, or a reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed a cognizable offence, to appear before him or at such other place as may be specified in the notice.

When such a notice is issued to any person, it shall be the duty of that person to comply with the terms of the notice. When such person complies and continues to comply with the notice, he shall not be arrested in respect of the offence referred to in the notice unless, for reasons to be recorded, the police officer is of the opinion that he ought to be arrested.

And when the person being questioned is not cooperative, the law says that if such person, at any time, fails to comply with the terms of the notice or is unwilling to identify himself, the police officer may, subject to such orders as may have been passed by a competent court in this behalf, arrest him for the offence mentioned in the notice.

The official said that the counsel for the accused Mohammed Zubair moved application for grant of bail, however, the same was heard at length and not finding the merits, the bail was ultimately declined.

The 33-year-old fact-checker is currently under police custody and is being interrogated over one of his objectionable tweets which he posted in 2018. After Zubair’s tweet, his followers on social media entities amplified and created a series of debates and hate mongering in the thread.

“He was examined in this separate case and his role was found objectionable,” the official said.

The police have charged Zubair with Indian Penal Code sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence) and 295A (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs).

Sources told IANS that the tweet for which Zubair is being questioned is 4 years old. In the said tweet, accused Zubair had used a screengrab of an old Hindi movie which showed an image of a hotel, with its board reading ‘Hanuman hotel’ instead of ‘Honeymoon hotel’.

In his tweet, Zubair had written, “BEFORE 2014: Honeymoon Hotel. After 2014: Hanuman Hotel”.

Meanwhile, the Opposition left no chance to train guns at the present dispensation and accused them of curbing free speech and targeting those who are exposing the BJP.

“Every person exposing BJP’s hate, bigotry and lies is a threat to them. Arresting one voice of truth will only give rise to a thousand more. Truth ALWAYS triumphs over tyranny,” tweeted Rahul Gandhi soon after the news of fact-checker’s arrest broke out.

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said that Altnews and Zubair have been in the forefront of exposing the “bogus claims of the Vishguru”, who has struck back with a vengeance characteristic of him. “Delhi Police, reporting to the Union Home Minister, has long lost any pretensions of professionalism and independence,” he said.

Pertinent to mention here that Zubair was the first person to share former Bharatiya Janata Party leader Nupur Sharma’s alleged remarks against Prophet Mohammed during a TV debate.

The controversial statement made by Nupur Sharma set off an international furore. Several Muslim nations, including Afghanistan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Indonesia and Iran, as well as the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation officially protested their statements and demanded an apology.

Following the uproar, the Bharatiya Janata Party suspended Sharma and another leader, Naveen Kumar Jindal, who also made insulting comments against Prophet Muhammad on social media.

However, soon after her comments, Sharma was targeted on social media and received thousands of death threats following which the police provided a security cover to her.

She had lodged a complaint with the Delhi Police on May 27 alleging that she had been receiving death threats and was a target of hatred.

Crime

Mahim Police Arrest 37-Year-Old Man For Sexually Abusing Two Minor Boys Under Pretext Of Video Games; Case Registered Under POCSO Act

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Mumbai: The Mahim police have arrested a 37-year-old man on Thursday, for allegedly sexually abusing two minor boys, aged seven and eight, after luring them to his home under the pretext of letting them play video games.

The accused has been booked under the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Police are investigating if the accused has a history of similar offenses.

The incident came to light on Wednesday evening when one of the victims informed his mother about the ordeal. The mother promptly filed a complaint with the police, leading to the swift apprehension of the accused.

According to police, the accused reportedly offered the boys money before the alleged abuse. One of the victims was admitted to Bhabha Hospital for treatment after complaining of pain to his mother. Both children are friends.

The Mahim police have registered a case under Section 64(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Sections 4, 6, 8, and 10 of the POCSO Act. While initial checks have not revealed any prior criminal history for the accused, police are investigating if he has a history of similar offenses.

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Crime

Delhi: Three thieves arrested, six stolen phones recovered

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New Delhi, June 20: Three thieves were arrested and six stolen mobile phones were recovered along with a dummy pistol and a scooter used in multiple crimes by the Tilak Marg Police in Delhi, an official said on Friday.

The accused have been identified as Arbaz (22) of Sarai Kale Khan, Pankaj Mourya (22) of Jungpura, and Rahul Bagh (26) of Chirag Delhi.

“Six stolen mobile phones, one dummy pistol and a scooter used in the crime were recovered from the accused,” said Delhi Police in a statement.

The official said that the arrested accused had been selling stolen mobile phones on e-commerce platforms using fake Aadhaar cards and forged invoices.

The breakthrough in the case came after a complaint was filed by a Blinkit delivery boy, who reported the theft of his mobile phone, stating that it was stolen while he was delivering an order on Pandara Road.

The accused had tricked him by pretending to make an online payment before fleeing with his mobile phone. An E-FIR (No. 80056549/2025) was registered under Section 303(2) BNS at PS Tilak Marg on June 13, 2025.

A special team led by SI Kamlesh Kumar, along with HC Sanjeet Kumar, Ct. Jhabbar Mal and Ct. Ram Tyagi worked under the supervision of SHO Gurmail Singh and ACP Nageen Kaushik to crack the case.

CCTV footage from the area showed the culprits fleeing on a scooter. Order details from Blinkit and further analysis of internet logs helped police trace one suspect to Sarai Kale Khan. However, he vacated the premises a month ago.

Using technical surveillance and informants, police eventually tracked the trio to a rented house in Chhatarpur.

So far, three E-FIRs from Tilak Marg, Kalkaji, and Vasant Kunj South, and one lost report from Sunlight Colony, have been worked out with these arrests.

The official said that further investigation is underway to uncover the full extent of the racket and recover additional stolen items.

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Crime

Honeymoon murder case: Meghalaya Police question over 20 people in Indore

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Indore, June 19: A Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Meghalaya Police, which arrived here on Tuesday in connection with the ongoing investigation pertaining to the murder of Raja Raghuvanshi, has questioned around 20 people, including Sonam and Raj Kushwaha’s family members, to date.

Apart from the family members, Meghalaya Police also visited Sonam’s brother Govind Raghuvanshi’s plywood factory and questioned employees working there, who were known to Sonam and Raj Kushwaha, key accused in the murder of Raja Raghuvanshi.

During cross-examination of arrested accused — Sonam, her alleged boyfriend Raj Kushwaha and his three friends — the Meghalaya Police learnt that they had discussed the entire plan to execute crime at a restaurant located in Super Corridor area in Indore.

The owner of the restaurant, where Sonam and Raj Kushwaha along with others reportedly planned the murder, is also said to be ‘under suspicion’.

Speaking to media on Thursday, he said that he came to know about the sensational murder case from news reports.

“A number of customers visit my restaurant every day, so I can’t remember them. Yes, there is one corner area here (at restaurant) where people sit for hours. But we just take orders from them and serve,” restaurant owner Jai Soni said.

Asked if Meghalaya or Indore police visited his restaurant for investigation, he said: “Not yet.”

He added: “We will cooperate if they (police) would visit here. This incident has brought shame for entire Indore city. We will provide them CCTV footage.”

Meghalaya Police on Wednesday visited the Indore residence of Sonam Raghuvanshi — the prime accused in the case pertaining to the murder of her husband Raja Raghuvanshi and questioned her family members in connection with the probe into the case.

The Meghalaya Police team had also visited Raja Raghuvanshi’s home and met his family members, including mother on Tuesday night.

During half-an-hour’s meeting, Meghalaya police asked about Sonam’s behaviour during her three-day stay in Raja’s home.

Notably, Raja and Sonam had got married on May 11 in Indore, and she lived in Raja’s home till May 13. She had returned to her parental home on June 14, and then, the couple had left for their honeymoon trip Meghalaya on May 21.

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