In Uttar Pradesh’s Azamgarh district, a professor of Shibli PG College was assaulted and threatened on 24th April while brandishing a pistol by a Muslim mob alleging a ‘Bhagwa love trap’. The accused also tried to incite religious sentiments by making a video of the incident viral online. The police have arrested one Osama after registering a case against four to five accused persons based on a complaint lodged by Shibli College’s principal. The victim has been identified as Ashutosh Maheshwari.
Reports say that after the farewell party, when Assistant Professor Ashutosh Maheshwari walked out the college girls and boys followed him. Ashutosh Maheshwari was walking in front, with the girls following him. At this time, some people took photos and videos and circulated them on social media with the caption, “Save the college from becoming a gang and Bhagwa love trap.”
The incident unfolded on 24th April after the farewell party in the Sociology Department of Shibli College. Four to five persons thrashed Ashutosh Maheshwari, including Simnam from Dugdugwa and Osama from Bajbahadur. When the Head of the Department Professor Noman Ahmed and senior spokesperson Dr. Meesam Abbas arrived, the the accused persons destroyed several government documents for the department and fled with some crucial documents.
Following the incident, Shibli College’s principal submitted a complaint to the police. Based on the complaint, the police registered a case under sections 323, 504, 506, 353 and 427 of the IPC against two identified and four to five unidentified accused. Meanwhile, City SP Shailendra Lal said that the police are investigating who uploaded the said video online.
Notably, the Bhagwa love trap is a conspiracy theory peddled by Islamists who claim that Hindu men are trapping Muslim women. There have been several cases where a group of Islamists chased Hindu men travelling with their Muslim female friends and assaulted them.