8 booked for eating meat during Sangam boat ride, say UP police

An FIR has been lodged against eight men for allegedly cooking and consuming non-vegetarian food while taking a boat ride in flooded waters of the Ganga in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj, police said on Wednesday.

A first information report (FIR) has been lodged against eight men for allegedly cooking and consuming non-vegetarian food while taking a boat ride in flooded waters of the Ganga in Uttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj, police said on Wednesday.

8 booked for eating meat during Sangam boat ride, say UP police

Taking cognisance of a video of the incident, allegedly shot by the suspects themselves, the Daraganj police booked two named and six unnamed youths for defiling places of worship and promoting enmity between religious groups, Prayagraj superintendent of police (SP) Santosh Kumar Meena said.

The video was widely circulated on social media and WhatsApp groups on Monday and several right-wing groups shared it with chief minister Yogi Adityanath and senior police officers, demanding action against the suspects for hurting religious sentiments of Hindus.

Investigations revealed that the video was shot in Daraganj area, the SP said, adding that police teams have been formed to arrest the suspects.

“On the basis of the viral video, an FIR has been lodged under sections 295 (injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class) and 153-A (promoting enmity between different religious groups) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the eight youths, two of whom have been identified,” said Meena. “Efforts are now underway to arrest the duo who are on run and identify the other six youths seen on the boat in the viral video.”

Sale, cooking and consumption of non-vegetarian products as well as alcohol is prohibited in the entire Sangam area, said a senior district administration official.

“Announcements are made in this regard from time to time there, especially during the religious fairs like Magh Mela and Kumbh that are held on the Sangam banks,” the official added.

The Sangam, also known as Triveni Sangam, is the confluence of three rivers — the Ganga, the Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati — in Prayagraj and is a revered place in the Hindu religion.

In the viral video, a youth in the front of the boat is purportedly seen smoking a hukkah while another one roasts what appears to be chicken. Inundated houses are also visible around the boat in the flooded waters at the Sangam.

HT cannot independently verify the authenticity of the video.

The action of the youths has deeply hurt the religious sentiments of millions of Hindus who come to Sangam to take a dip in the holy waters, said Mahant Ravindra Puri, president of the Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP), the top decision-taking body of Hindu monastic orders in the country.

“Sangam area is a revered site of pilgrimage for millions and not a picnic spot. People are upset seeing youths cooking and eating non-vegetarian food,” said Puri. “I call upon senior police and administrative officials to ensure that all these youths are identified and action is taken against them on priority.”

The act of the youths is an insult of the Sanatan dharma, claimed Mahant Hari Giri, secretary of ABAP and the chief patron of Juna Akhara, one of the oldest Hindu monastic orders in the country.

“This is shocking behavior on part of these youths,” he said. “I demand that strict action be initiated against these youths as per law so that no such incident takes place in future to insult beliefs of millions of Hindus and hurt their religious sentiments.”