Gujarat police nab former SIMI chief in Azamgarh

Gujarat police inspector YP Sadeja said the case was registered against Shahid Badr under Sections 353 (criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) and 143 (unlawful assembly) of the Indian Penal Code in a police station at Kutch in 2001 for delivering an inflammatory speech.

A Gujarat police team arrested Shahid Badr, the former chief of the banned Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), from his house in Azamgarh on late Thursday night in connection with a hate speech case registered against him in Kutch district of Gujarat 18 years ago.

A Gujarat police team arrested Shahid Badr, the former chief of the banned Students’ Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), from his house in Azamgarh on late Thursday night in connection with a hate speech case registered against him in Kutch district of Gujarat 18 years ago. (HT File (Representative Image))

Gujarat police inspector YP Sadeja said the case was registered against Shahid Badr under Sections 353 (criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty) and 143 (unlawful assembly) of the Indian Penal Code in a police station at Kutch in 2001 for delivering an inflammatory speech. A court issued an arrest warrant against him in 2012 in connection with the case but he could not be arrested at the time as his address was not known, Sadeja said.

After the address was confirmed, a four-member police team led by Sadeja reached Azamgarh and arrested Shahid Badr from his residence near Karbala Maidan and brought him to the Kotwali police station on Thursday night, he said.

Sadeja said he would seek transit remand from a court on Friday and take Shahid Badr to Gujarat.