Bhim Sena chief Nawab Satpal Tanwar was arrested by the Delhi Police on Thursday, 16 June, for allegedly threatening former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Nupur Sharma over her remarks on Prophet Muhammad.
Tanwar had also announced a bounty on Sharma through a video on social media, the police said.
The police alleged that Tanwar was moving from one place to another in North India, such as Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Haryana, to evade arrest. However, he was finally nabbed in Gurgaon.
"We took cognisance of the video. The man is heard making life-threatening remarks and is trying to spread hatred. We arrested Tanwar from Gurgaon. He has been booked under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 506 (criminal intimidation), 509 (insult modesty of a woman) and 153A (promoting enmity between different groups)," an official from the Special Cell's Cyber Cell was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
Police File 19 FIRs Over Social Media Hate
As many as 19 First Information Reports (FIRs) have been lodged by the Delhi Police against persons accused of "spreading hate" through social media, and allegedly attempting to obstruct public tranquility.
The FIRs have been registered under various sections of the IPC, such as 153A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc), 505 (statements conducing to public mischief), 295A (Deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs), 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation), and 509 (Word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman).
The Delhi Police in a press release also cautioned individuals to not misuse social media by "propagating hate" and disturbing communal harmony.
"Delhi Police under the ambit of law is taking strict action against such entities," the release said.
(With inputs from The Indian Express.)
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