Muzaffarnagar police booked four people for fighting in a public place, a video of the incident has surfaced that shows the two accused Muslim youths being assaulted by a group, police said. (Source: Google Maps) Muzaffarnagar police booked four people for fighting in a public place, a video of the incident has surfaced that shows the two accused Muslim youths being assaulted by a group, police said. (Source: Google Maps)

TWO days after Muzaffarnagar police booked four people — two Hindus and two Muslims — for fighting in a public place, a video of the incident has surfaced that shows the two accused Muslim youths being assaulted by a group, police said. However, they are yet to receive any complaint in the matter. The incident took place on May 19. All four youths — identified as Shiva, Kashish, Abdulla and Amir — were booked under Section 151 of the CrPC (arrest to prevent commission of cognizable offences) and granted bail the same day.

According to the police, after seeing the video, which has gone viral, they contacted the families of Abdulla and Amir to file an FIR in the matter, but they refused to do. Additional SP, Muzaffarnagar, Aditya Prakash Verma said: “The families of Abdulla and Amir have so far not submitted any complaint to get an FIR registered.”

Neither family seemed interested in pursuing the matter, he said. Abdulla and Amir are residents of Muslim-dominated Bagheri village. Station House Officer of Nai Mandi police station, Prabhakar Kentura, said that on May 19 afternoon the police got information about a clash between two groups near Kamla farmhouse over eve-teasing. The police went to the spot and caught four persons.

“All four then told the police that their dispute had been resolved and they did not want to initiate legal formalities…They gave it in writing in the court that the dispute between them had been resolved,” Kentura said. “Yesterday, when I saw the video of the incident, I was surprised. Abdulla and Amir had not told us that they were beaten up by the group.” Abdulla’s father is a farmer, while Amir Ali’s family runs a grocery store.

The pradhan of Bagheri village, Sabir Hasan, said, “I spoke to both families. They are not ready to file a complaint. Both families are avoiding the issue out of fear.” VHP’s Muzaffarnagar district president Sachin Singhal did not deny that the two Muslim youths were thrashed but said Shiva and Kashish did not belong to the Bajrang Dal, a youth wing of the VHP.

Singhal said he had come to know that Abdulla and Amir had gone to meet a girl with whom they came in contact through Facebook. “They had been using a fake Facebook account and giving her the impression that they were girls. When the girl saw them on May 19, she raised the alarm, following which residents gathered and thrashed Abdulla and Amir.”

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