Sambhal Shahi Jama Masjid chief arrested over November 24 violence

way2barak, March 24 : Shahi Jama Masjid committee president Zafar Ali was arrested on Sunday in connection with the violence that erupted here in November last year over a court-ordered survey of the mosque, a police officer said. His arrest comes a day before he was scheduled to appear before a judicial commission investigating the violence.

Sambhal had witnessed violent clashes after a local court ordered a survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid to determine whether a temple had previously existed at the site.

The violence resulted in five deaths and left many injured, including two police officers who were attacked by an enraged mob opposing the survey.

The petition that led to the court order claimed that the masjid was built over the Harihar temple, which was allegedly demolished during the reign of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb.

Sambhal Superintendent of Police Krishna Kumar stated, “We have evidence pointing towards his role in inciting violence. He was picked up by the police from his house in Sambhal on Sunday morning and was interrogated at Kotwali police station by senior officers before being finally arrested.”

Before Ali’s arrest, Rapid Action Force (RAF) and Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) personnel were deployed in large numbers around both the contested mosque and Ali’s residence, which is located just 100 metres away from the Shahi Jama Masjid.

Zafar Ali was previously detained on 25 November, a day after the riots, but was released after questioning. “Since then, we had been gathering clinching evidence against the Jama Masjid chairman, and today he has been arrested,” said Additional Superintendent of Police Shirish Chand.

Ali’s elder brother, Tahir Ali, alleged that the arrest was an attempt to prevent him from testifying before the judicial commission on Monday.

Two policemen came to our residence on Sunday morning under the pretext of recording fresh statements from Zafar Ali regarding the 24 November violence. They took him to the local Kotwali police station,” he said.

Ali had previously accused the district police of firing the bullets that killed those who lost their lives during the violence.

So far, the Sambhal police have arrested and jailed 79 individuals, including three women. One of the women, Farhana, was later released.

The Uttar Pradesh Police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT) filed a 4,000-page chargesheet last month in six of the twelve cases related to the riots.

The chargesheet, filed on Thursday, named a Dubai-based international auto-lifter as the alleged mastermind behind the unrest. The accused face charges of rioting, arson, and firing, with investigations linking the violence to organised crime and foreign funding.

According to the chargesheet, 80 arrests have been made so far, while 79 suspects remain at large. The total number of accused individuals in the case stands at 159.