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11 held for instigating migrant workers to gather at Bandra
Mumbai: Eleven people, including a journalist with a Marathi news channel, were on Wednesday arrested for allegedly spreading rumours that the state was running
Mumbai: Eleven people, including a journalist with a Marathi news channel, were on Wednesday arrested for allegedly spreading rumours that the state was running a special train for migrant workers, which led to around 1,000 of them gathering at the Bandra railway station on Tuesday, defying the nationwide lockdown.
The large gathering eventually forced the Mumbai Police to resort to lathi-charge to disperse the migrants — most of them from Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal — who were demanding the state help them return home. This was hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended the coronavirus-enforced nationwide lockdown to May 3. An FIR was registered on Tuesday against 700 people at Bandra police station, under which nine people were arrested, and another two FIRs were filed on Wenesday . Vijayalaxmi Hiremath, senior police inspector at Bandra police station, confirmed the arrests.
On Wednesday, an FIR was filed against Vinay Dubey, a resident of Navi Mumbai, who uploaded a video on social media, telling migrant workers from north India to gather at Kurla Terminus on April 18 to demand that they be sent back to their homes. Dubey, booked under sections 117, 153(a), 188, 269, 270, 505(2) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and section 3 of the Epidemic Diseases Act, was detained from Navi Mumbai late on Tuesday. Another FIR was against Rahul Kulkarni, a journalist with a Marathi news channel, for running a report, stating that a special train will run for migrant workers, said Bandra police officers. Kulkarni was arrested in the afternoon. “He will be produced in court tomorrow,” said Hiremath.
Later in the day, nine people —Mohammad Amruddin, 35; Saif Hussein Shaikh, 36; Alam Mohammad Salim Shaikh, 28; Shamsher Ali Amir Ali Malik, 36; Helal Hakimuddin Ali, 32; Mohammad Shahid Ibrahim Shaikh, 29; Mohammad Arshad Mohammad Anvar Shaikh, 26; Altabash Chhotu Shaikh,28 and Firoz Sailchul Shaikh, 20 — were arrested from Shastri Nagar in Bandra (West). All the accused were arrested as per the FIR lodged on Tuesday.
Kulkarni has been booked under sections 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) 270 (malignant act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) 505 (b) (with intent to cause, or which is likely to cause, fear or alarm to the public, or to any section of the public whereby any person may be induced to commit an offence against the state or against the public tranquillity), 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) 117 (abetting commission of offence by the public or by more than ten persons) of the IPC, along with section 3 of the Epidemic Diseases Act.
Bandra police officers also revealed that they have narrowed down a list of other suspects responsible for the gathering. The police are questioning at least seven people from Bandra (West).
