Maha cops arrest Etawah youth for hate post

KANPUR: The Maharashtra police arrested a teenager from Etawah for an objectionable post he circulated on social messaging service Whatsapp.

However, the police team faced protests from Hindu Sena activists when they went to nab the youth in Etawah on Friday.

Led by the Sena’s state president Pradeep Sharma, the activists forced the police to produce the accused in the chief judicial magistrate’s court, which granted them a transit remand of 72 hours.

The Whatapp message caused a sensation in Amravati, where a case was registered against an unknown sender. The message was traced to Adesh Rathore of Chipaiti village in Etawah.

Rathore, according to police, had posted a picture in which he was seen urinating on a place of worship. The picture was received by Zakir Hussain of Frezerpura in Amravati last month.

As it went viral, people protested on the streets.

A case was registered on October 23, 2015. Investigation revealed that the picture had come in circulation through Rathore.

A three-member police team of sub-inspector Bhagwan Kohli and constables Pravindra Rathore and Pramod Somvanshi arrested Rathore from his village not before facing protest by Hindu Sena, which demanded the accused be produced in the local court first.