Hathras case: FIR against bid to trigger caste conflict

Hathras/Lucknow: Amid an outrage over the alleged gang rape and killing of a Dalit woman, Hathras police have lodged an FIR against “unknown” persons and invoked the sedition charge against them for attempting to trigger a caste conflict and tarnish the UP government’s image.
The FIR lodged at Chandpa police station on Sunday mentioned 19 IPC sections, including 124A (sedition), 505 (intending to cause public alarm and inducing someone to commit offence against state or public tranquillity), 153A (promoting enmity between groups).
Altogether, the UP police have filed 19 cases on similar charges in parts of the state. ADG (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar said six cases have been filed in Hathras district and the rest 13 in Bijnor, Saharanpur, Bulandshahr, Allahabad, Ayodhya and Lucknow.
The development comes amid an undying controversy over the alleged gang rape of the woman and continuous protests and visits to her village by political leaders and activists.
Kumar said efforts are on to vitiate the atmosphere through posters and social media posts. In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, permission had been given for only five people linked to political parties to visit the victim’s village but some parties and workers violated it, he said.
The UP government’s statements and facts related to the Hathras incident are being forged, manipulated and circulated through social media. Misleading content is being shared with forged logos of media houses, a police officer told PTI. (PTI)