BHOPAL: A social media post by a 17-year-old teenager triggered tension in the communally sensitive Burhanpur city of southwestern Madhya Pradesh before the police intervened and brought the situation under control.
The incident occurred late on Tuesday at around 10.30 pm when the teenager from the Lohar Mandi locality of the city posted comments about a particular religion on an Instagram group chat. The concerned post quickly became viral, prompting a mob of the other community to gather in the main market.
Upon learning about the incident, the local police rushed to the spot around 11.30 pm and attempted to disperse the mob. However, the crowd, shouting slogans, moved to Burhanpur City Kotwali and protested against the offensive post until late at night.
According to sources, after the late-night religious prayers ended, the mob gathered quickly and proceeded to the Kotwali.
Burhanpur district police superintendent, Devendra Patidar, said an FIR was lodged against the accused under Section 299 BNS which deals with deliberate and malicious acts intended to hurt religious feelings. The teenager was subsequently detained.
“Before the FIR was lodged, the protesters were agitating outside the police station. We sat with them and informed them about the prompt action in the matter, after which the protest ended. Prohibitory orders are already in place to prevent offensive and misleading social media posts. We want to clarify that irrespective of age or gender, strict action will be taken against anyone who tries to vitiate the law and order through any such post,” the SP added.
The Burhanpur district of southwestern Madhya Pradesh neighbours Maharashtra. The district headquarters house an old city, which is particularly communally sensitive.
Sources said that if the situation not been controlled timely, it could have led to untoward incidents just a few hours before the festival of colours Rang Panchami, which is more popular in parts of western and southwestern MP.
The incident occurred nine days after firecrackers were burst and slogans were shouted outside a place of worship during a procession celebrating the Indian cricket team’s Champions Trophy win. The event triggered major communal violence in Mhow town, Indore district, about 175 km from Burhanpur.