Bhiwandi man arrested for sharing message on Prophet on Whatsapp

BHIWANDI: The repercussions of former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma’s statement against Prophet Mohammad are still felt in Bhiwandi city, with another case registered by the police on Saturday against a 27-year-old man who sent a similar kind of message (which Sharma had shared earlier) on one of the Whatsapp groups.

The members of the group took offence and filed a case against him. Subsequently, the Nizampura police arrested him for spreading hatred in the name of religion. This is the sixth such case filed in the last 15 days -two in Nizampura police station, three with Bhiwandi city and one in Bhoiwada police station.

The accused arrested on Saturday is identified as Nikesh Pashte and works as a daily wager. He is a member of one of the local Bhiwandi Whatsapp Group, called ‘Bhiwandi A1’. He had some arguments over petty issues in the group, so he posted a message and video humiliating Prophet Mohammad.

PI D Bane from Nijampura police said, “We received a complaint from one of the group members. After checking all messages and videos, we arrested Pashte for provoking and disturbing religious harmony in the city. After his arrest, he was produced in court and was remanded in police custody for two days. We are investigating the motive behind sharing such messages.” Following the previous arrest, Bhiwandi Police had appealed to the residents to maintain peace in the city and refrain from sharing any insulting videos, status and messages on any social media platforms. DCP Yogesh Chavan had given directives that strict action will be taken against anyone sharing such provoking content.