Prayagraj police issues posters of 59 accused of June 10 violence

The Prayagraj police have issued posters of 59 people, allegedly involved in the June 10 violence, which will be put up on roadsides and public places so that they could be identified and arrested, officials said on Wednesday.

The posters will also be circulated on social media platforms, they said.

We have video and photographic evidence showing that these people were involved in stone pelting and other illegal activities on June 10.

However, their identification is pending, Prayagraj Senior Superintendent of Police Ajay Kumar said.

We have appealed to the general public to help us in their identification, the SSP added.

The violence broke out after the Friday prayers against controversial remarks against Prophet Muhammad by now-removed BJP functionaries Nupur Sharma and Naveen Jindal.

"Arrests are being made after confirming the identities of the accused and as per law," the SSP clarified.

To prevent a possible repeat of such an incident coming Friday, the police have deployed an adequate amount of force.

Kumar said the police are also reaching out to prominent clerics and elders of the community to ensure peace.

Meanwhile, the media cell of the police on Wednesday shared information about the items recovered during searches at the house of Javed Ahmad alias Javed Pump, the alleged mastermind of the June 10 violence in Atala in Prayagraj, before it was demolished.

Police said they recovered pamphlets from his house that appealed to the people to gather in large numbers in Atala the day the violence broke out.

The district administration and police had demolished a two-storey house on Sunday, which they claimed belonged to Ahmad and that it was illegally constructed, but his lawyers and family members said the house was actually owned by his wife Parveen Fatima and was given to her by her parents before her marriage.

The lawyers alleged that the demolition was against the law and that neither Ahmad nor his wife never got a show-cause notice.

On Saturday, the Kanpur Development Authority had demolished a multi-storey building allegedly owned by a close aide of Nizam Qureshi, the alleged mastermind of the June 3 violence in the city.

The Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party have condemned the demolitions.

Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind has filed two fresh pleas in the Supreme Court seeking directions to the Uttar Pradesh government to ensure that no further demolitions are carried out without following the due process.