A controversy broke out at a hookah bar in Meerut’s Abulane area on Wednesday afternoon after members of Hindu right-wing organisations confronted a Muslim youth who was with a Hindu woman and accused him of hiding his identity.
According to police, workers associated with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal reached the hookah bar after receiving information about the couple. They allegedly questioned the man and later assaulted him before handing him over to police.
Youth Introduced Himself by Another Name, Say Far-Right groups
Local VHP and Bajrang Dal workers, including Pawan Kashyap, Naman Agrawal, Ujjwal Tayal and Yash Prajapati, were present at the spot and questioned both the man and the woman.
According to allegations made by the activists, the youth initially identified himself as “Abhishek” but later revealed his name as Shoaib. After this, tensions escalated and some workers allegedly assaulted him.
Police personnel from the Abulane outpost, led by officer Vinay Kumar, reached the spot soon after receiving information and intervened.
Officials said police had to rescue the youth from the crowd, during which an argument reportedly broke out between some activists and police personnel.
Police Take Couple Into Custody, Case Registered
Police later took both the man and woman to the police station for questioning.
This story was originally published in theobserverpost.com. Read the full story here.