‘Mastermind’ of Haldwani violence held; son at large
Abdul Malik, who is alleged to be behind the violence that broke in Haldwani’s Banbhoolpura locality earlier this month after the demolition of a mosque and madrasa by the district administration as part of antiencroachment drive, has been arrested, the Uttarakhand police said on Saturday.
A senior officer said Mr. Malik had encroached upon the nazool land and was trying to illegally sell it to people, adding that the violence — which left five persons dead and over 100 injured — was a planned event to challenge the State machinery.
Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Prahlad Naryan Meena told The Hindu that besides Mr. Malik, over 80 people have been arrested so far in the case.
“Six teams were formed to search for Malik and his son Abdul Moid; they were looking for him in different States, including Gujarat, Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar. One of these teams arrested Malik from Delhi but his son is still on the run,” the SSP added.
The SSP added that the accused have been booked for hatching a criminal conspiracy, cheating along with rioting, and criminal intimidation among others. Director General of Police Abhinav Kumar has announced a cash reward of ₹50,000 for the police team that arrested Mr. Malik.
Uttarakhand Police has already attached the properties of Mr. Malik and his son. The action took place after Mr. Malik failed to deposit ₹2.44 crore to the municipal body of Haldwani, which on February 13 had served a recovery notice to Mr. Malik for the damage done to vehicles of both the administration and the public during the violence.