The Uttar Pradesh police on Monday booked Millat Times editor Shams Tabrez Qasim over posting videos related to Kanpur violence.
Qasim was booked under sections 505 and 507 of the Indian Penal Code and section 66 of Information and Technology Act. He has also been accused of spreading provocative & fake news. The journalist took Twitter to share details of the complaint.
“Police has filed a case against me over my video tweet regarding Kanpur violence. The case and charges against me are baseless. This attempt of the UP police to silence me will not work. I will continue doing journalism to hold power to account,” read the post
Background of Kanpur violence:
Following BJP leader Nupur Sharma’s derogatory remarks against Prophet Mohammad on a prime time news channel, communal clashes broke out on June 3 in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh.
The clash occurred when Muslim shopkeepers were closing their shops in the Beconganj area after the Friday prayers as a mark of protest against the former BJP spokesperson’s remarks. It soon engulfed into stone-pelting and brick batting.
Seventeen persons had been taken into custody after the incident. Incidentally, President Ram Nath Kovind, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were in Kanpur’s Dehat, a neighbouring district around the same time when the clashes broke out.
(with inputs from IANS)
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