While the FIR into the Nagpur violence on 17th March has revealed that it was triggered by a politician named Faheem Khan, 8 members of Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal surrendered before the Kotwali Police in Mahal, Nagpur, on Wednesday after they were also booked in the case. The police have filed an FIR against 51 accused in the case, including Faheem Khan, city president of the Minority Democratic Party (MDP) and mastermind of the violence.
Nagpur Police have named people VHP and Bajrang Dal in the case, accusing them of hurting religious sentiments of Muslims during their protest demanding the removal of Mughal tyrant Aurangzeb’s tomb in Sambhajinagar, formerly Aurangabad. Following this, the office bearers named in the FIR surrendered and they were then arrested by the police.
Their advocate Sanjay Balpande said, “They surrendered as there was a perception among the public that the police are taking one-sided action and the police are being lax in arresting the accused…To ensure that the situation remains peaceful, the accused surrendered and they will be produced in court…They staged the protest after taking permission but later violence erupted”.
However, when they were presented before a court after the arrest, they were granted bail. As per reports, they have been released on bail on a surety of ₹3,000 cash deposit each. The accused Hindu group activists have been identified as Dr Ramchandra Dubey Maharaj, Amol Thakre, Govind Shende, Kamal Haryani, Lakhan Kuril, Sushil Chaurasiya, Rushabh Arkhel, Shubham Arkhel, and Mukesh Barapatre.
#UPDATE | Nagpur | Judicial Magistrate First Class court, Nagpur grants bail to the eight accused on a surety of Rs 3,000 cash deposit each.
— ANI (@ANI) March 19, 2025
Eight workers of VHP and Bajrang Dal surrendered before Kotwali police earlier today. https://t.co/eQvYDCq0MH
Among them, Govind Shende didn’t surrender as he was not in the city, but his lawyer said that he will surrender after he returns. The eight surrendered workers were presented before the Judicial Magistrate First Class court by the police, and they didn’t seek their custody. After that, their advocate filed a bail plea, which was approved by the court.
As per the FIR, Bajrang Dal joint secretary Rahul Narnaware had sought permission for the protest to demanding to remove the tomb of Aurangzeb. The police said that the organisers were given strict instructions to not burn an effigy, but the VHP and Bajrang Dal workers disobeyed the order, resulting in the registration of the FIR against them.
As per the FIR, apart from the effigy, a piece of cloth bearing Muslim religious scriptures was also allegedly damaged. Videos of the incident went viral with claims that Hindus burnt the Quran during the protest, prompting Muslim groups to protest and file a complaint with the police.
However, the protest by the Muslim side soon turned violent, and the rioters set fire to cars, threw stones and damaged public property. The rioters had their faces concealed and were carrying swords, weapons and bottles.
The outnumbered cops had to fire tear gas and resort to lathi charges to bring the situation under control. Afterwards, the authorities enforced a curfew under section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) in effected areas of the city.
