UP: 3 held after Ghaziabad Mayor accuses minors of throwing meat in river

Ghaziabad: Three Muslim men have been arrested a day after Ghaziabad Mayor Sunita Dayal posted a video boldly claiming she “caught” two Muslim children attempting to throw remains of cow meat in a local river.

“Isi desh ka khayenge aur yahin gandagi karenge (they live off this country, yet they dirty it too),” the mayor said in a video shared on her personal Facebook account. Notably, the video failed to blur the faces of the minor children, an offence under the Juvenile Justice Act.

Dayal confirmed to The Wire that she saw the children while on a visit to the Hindon Barrage in Indirapuram, where the incident took place. “It was then that I saw those kids accompanied by two other people. Then we figured they (the minors) were carrying meat in a gunny bag. Kids also admitted that it was cow’s meat,” she said.

Dayal was heard scolding the children, despite there being no proof of her claims shown in the video. “Dimag patthar bana diya hai inka (their brains have been turned into stone)… is madarasse par na maine tala lagwaya toh baat nahi (just see how I will ensure that this madrassa is sealed forever),”

On May 25, the Uttar Pradesh police apprehended three men linked to a local madrasa on the basis of the mayor’s allegations. According to The Wire, the police arrested Zubair, Aijaz, and Shoaib under Sections 271, 272, and 279 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Section 271 covers negligent acts likely to spread life-threatening infections, carrying a prison sentence of up to six months. Section 272 covers malicious acts that risk spreading life-threatening infections, with a stricter penalty of up to two years in prison. Section 279 deals with the fouling of public water bodies, with a maximum sentence of six months’ imprisonment.

The three men were booked over allegations of throwing meat in an open area and throwing it in the river, “causing pollution,” the police said. “Three persons associated with a local madrassa had told these kids to dispose of the remains, so accordingly initial action was taken,” the Assistant Commissioner of Police Abhishek Srivastava. He added that no action was taken against the minors.