5 held in Chhattisgarh’s Bilaspur for displaying Palestine flags
The arrests are the latest in a series of such actions across the county amid Israeli bombardment of the besieged Palestinian Gaza strip that has left around 41,000 people dead
Five youths aged between 19 and 24 have been arrested in Chhattisgarh’s Bilaspur for allegedly displaying flags resembling that of Palestine, the latest in a series of such actions across the county amid Israeli bombardment of the besieged Palestinian Gaza strip.
Police said that Sheikh Sameer Bkash, 20, Fidel Khan, 24, Mohammad Shoaib, 23, Sheikh Azeem, 19, and Sheikh Sameer, 22 were arrested on a complaint on Tuesday that Palestinian flags were flying over some houses in Bilaspur’s Khudiram Bose Square.
Police superintendent Puja Kumar said a team visited the spot and removed the flags from the roofs of five houses. Kumar said they have registered a case against the five under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita’s Section 197 (2), which relates to imputations and assertions prejudicial to national integration. The five face imprisonment for up to five years if convicted.
Police said the accused told them that they displayed the flags to express solidarity with Palestinians after watching atrocities being committed against them. Kumar said the accused allegedly stitched the flags and raised them on their roofs. “Further investigation was on.”
Inspector-general (Bilaspur) Sanjeev Shukla said the accused intentionally tried to disturb peace in that area and hoisted the flags when both Hindu and Muslim communities were celebrating their festivals. “The case was registered on the intention of the accused,” he said when asked whether displaying the Palestinian flag was an offence particularly when India has historically backed the cause of Palestine.
India has reiterated its long-standing policy towards Palestine amid the continuing Israeli assault on Gaza that has left around 41,000 people dead. In February, the government told Parliament it supported a negotiated two-state solution towards the establishment of a sovereign, independent, and viable Palestinian state within secure and recognised borders living side by side in peace with Israel while condemning the loss of civilian lives in the ongoing conflict. “We have called for restraint and de-escalation and emphasized peaceful resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy,” the then minister of state for external affairs V Muraleedharan told Parliament in February.
External affairs minister S Jaishankar met his Palestinian counterpart, Riyad al-Maliki, in January in Uganda’s Kampala and reiterated India’s support for the two-state solution. India in July contributed $2.5 million to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.