Lucknow, March 14: Holding the Uttar Pradesh government and state police responsible for riots in Bareilly, Samajwadi Party President Mulayam Singh Yadav today slammed the arrest of Sunni cleric Tauqeer Raza Khan.
“It’s an insult that a prominent ulema and leader like Maulana Tauqeer Raza Khan was arrested and jailed,” Yadav told reporters here.
Alleging that atrocities were being committed against Muslims and they were being insulted, the former chief minister questioned that for which crime Maulana Khan was arrested.
“People from every section of society felt bad on his arrest. The government’s move backfired and failing to control the situation it was forced to release Maulana,” he said.
Khan, leader of Ittehad-e-Millat Conference, was arrested on March 8 on charges of inciting communal feelings, attempt to murder and treason. The Sunni cleric was released on March 11.
–Agencies