Nahan: UP youth held for sharing photos of animal sacrifice

Pankaj Sharma

Nahan, June 23

The Uttar Pradesh Police arrested a youth, who is accused of uploading objectionable pictures of alleged animal sacrifice on WhatsApp, from Jalalabad in Shamli district in a late-night operation on Saturday.

Javed, who has been running a cloth shop in the Chhota Chowk market of Nahan in Sirmaur district, had uploaded the pictures while he was in his ancestral village in Uttar Pradesh, triggering outrage among Hindu organisations in Nahan.

Javed was charged by the police for disturbing communal harmony and hurting religious sentiments. The Nahan police have also taken action against him under Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code.

Following the incident, the Sirmaur police remained in touch with their Shamli counterparts.

In a statement on Saturday, Shamli Superintendent of Police Abhishek said the pictures of animal sacrifice were uploaded during Eid. However, the police investigations revealed that the sacrificed animal was not of a prohibited species.

The Shamli SP confirmed Javed’s arrest and said the investigating officer was examining all aspects of the case. He added that the electronic device used to upload the pictures would be confiscated.

Sirmaur ASP Yogesh Rolta said the police from the state concerned were handling the investigation.

On June 19 morning, Hindu organisations and traders’ association in Nahan vandalised Javed’s shop and threw clothing items onto the street. While the Nahan police had registered a case against Javed, they had also filed charges against the protesters for damaging the shop.