Bhopal: It's all happening in communal violence-hit towns of Madhya Pradesh.
In what could be a major goof-up by the police, three men already in jail for a month in connection with an attempt-to-murder case, have now been booked by cops for setting a motorcycle and scooter ablaze during rioting in Sendhwa town of Barwani district on April 10. They have been booked under IPC Section 435 (Mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage to an amount of Rs 100 or upwards).
On the complaint of a local foodgrain merchant Rajesh Tayal, three men identified as Shahbaz, Rauf and Faqhru were booked on April 11 for setting a motorbike and a scooter on fire near Ghodeshahwali Mosque at Jogwada Road in Sendhwa town on April 10 evening, the day communal violence was triggered in the town following the attack on a Ram Navami procession.
Sendhwa in Barwani district and Khargone town of Khargone district are the two towns where communal violence was reported after attacks on Ram Navami processions on April 10 evening.
The trio had been arrested by the Sendhwa City Police on March 11 in an attempt-to-murder case lodged on March 5.
Shahbaz's mother Saqeena Bi asked The New Indian Express, "How can my son, who has already been in jail for a month, come out and set a motorbike ablaze. Who sent him out of jail to commit the alleged crime during the recent communal flare-up. We pleaded that our son is in jail, so how can he commit a crime outside? But the cops didn't listen to us. They even picked up Shahbaz's cousin Golu two days ago for communal violence and haven't released him, despite our request that he was in no way involved in any crime. Subsequently, our house too has been partially demolished by the authorities, without serving us any prior notice of it being illegal."
The partially demolished house in the Jogwada Road area of Sendhwa town housed the families of Shahbaz and his uncle Yusuf. "We're now forced to live in a rented house," Yusuf said.
Importantly, the three men, Shahbaz, Faqhru and Rauf, are already accused in multiple criminal cases. While Shahbaz was already accused in five cases, including murder and kidnapping cases in Sendhwa town of MP and adjoining Maharashtra, the two others Faqhru and Rauf too are accused in two and four cases respectively.
When contacted about the trio already lodged in jail being booked for burning vehicles during the recent communal violence, the Barwani district police superintendent Dipak Shukla said, "The First Information Report (FIR) is lodged on the basis of primary statements of the complainant. It is finally disposed of on the basis of facts and evidence collected during the course of subsequent investigations. The FIR isn't the final process.
"So, further action in the case will be taken in accordance with existing rules. If the complaint on the basis of which the FIR was lodged is found to be incorrect, not only will the case be annulled, but action will be initiated against the complainant for lodging an incorrect report. Till now it isn't clear whether those named in the FIR by the complainant are the same people or someone else. This would become clear only after detailed investigations," he added.
About demolishing a portion of Shahbaz's house, the local tehsildar Manish Kumar Pandey said so far 13 illegally constructed houses have been fully demolished and 20 other constructions, which were built by encroaching upon public land, have been partially demolished. But the entire demolition action has been initiated only after serving advance notices to the occupants of the concerned properties.