Bihar youth arrested for spreading rumours about migrant's death in Tamil Nadu

PATNA: A youth was arrested from Bihar's Gopalganj district on Friday allegedly for spreading rumours about the death of a migrant worker in Tamil Nadu.

The accused Umesh Mahto was arrested after he uploaded a fake video on social media about the death of a worker Ravindra Mahto in the southern state.

Gopalganj superintendent of police (SP) Swarna Prabhat said the accused confessed to the crime and said that he had circulated a fake video about the alleged murder of Ravindra Mahto in Tamil Nadu. Ravindra was a resident of Madhopur village in the Gopalganj district.

According to police, Ravindra Mahto died after being run over by a train near Bengaluru in Karnataka on March 7. Police had received a tip-off about Ravindra Mahto's body lying on the track between Chansandra and Yalhanka railway stations in Karnataka. The deceased's relatives told police that Ravindra had gone to Karnataka in search of a job early this year.

As migrant workers were agitated over reports of thrashing of their colleagues in Tamil Nadu, the incident gained alarming proportions. Migrant workers from Bihar's Gopalganj and Siwan districts started protests over the incident.

SP Prabhat said that Ravindra Mahto's family was shocked over his murder and demanded a fair investigation. “We contacted our counterparts in Karnataka who revealed that Ravindra died after being hit by a train. It has nothing to do with the incident in Tamil Nadu,” he added. 

“We registered a case against Umesh Mahto under relevant sections of the IPC and IT Act and arrested him,” SP Prabhat said.

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Earlier, another youth identified as Aman Kumar was arrested from Jamui on the charges of spreading rumours about the thrashing of Bihar's migrant workers in Tamil Nadu. He was arrested by the anti-terrorism squad of state police on March 7.

Meanwhile, additional director general of police (ADGP) J S Gangwar said that four FIRs have been lodged against people for spreading rumours and uploading fake videos related to the Tamil Nadu incident on social media platforms.

In a related development, a four-member team of officials, who had gone to Tamil Nadu to assess the situation, returned to Patna on Friday. Talking to media persons, one of the members of the team D. Balaji Murugan said that situation in Tamil Nadu was quite normal. “All the videos circulated on social media were fake. The fact came to light after holding several rounds of discussions with officials of the Tamil Nadu government and also migrant workers from Bihar,” he added.

The government has already set up a helpline to provide information related to migrant workers staying in the southern state. On March 4, altogether 740 calls were received at the helpline number released by the government.

The members of the visiting team also submitted a report to chief minister Nitish Kumar, who had earlier ordered an inquiry into the matter at the request of a delegation of BJP leaders. The government has already made it clear that stern action will be initiated against offenders.