Hyderabad: Almost 10 days after the hate speeches of MIM MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi delivered in Nirmal town of Adilabad and Nizamabad town in December last triggered a national outrage, the AP Police finally swung into action and arrested the legislator on Tuesday evening.
At the end of a day of high drama, the Nirmal police effected the arrest at Gandhi Hospital in Musheerabad where he was brought for a medical check-up in the morning. Akbaruddin has been charged under sections 121 (waging or attempting to wage war, or abetting the waging of war, against the Government of India) and 153-A (Promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for his December 22 speech in Nirmal town. Both the sections are non-bailable. If proven guilty, under section 121 of IPC, an accused would either get death penalty or life sentence along with fine. These sections are usually booked against terrorists and militants, who either plan or execute terror strikes in the country.
Soon after the arrest, even as an uneasy calm descended on Old City and shops downed shutters for the day, Akbaruddin was taken by road to Nirmal and lodged in the police station there for the night after the convoy arrived there at 9.40 pm. The police then recorded the MLA’s statement and he was scheduled to be produced before Nirmal munsif magistrate Ajesh Kumar.
MIM leaders and workers kept the Nizamabad and Adilabad administrations on tenterhooks throughout the night. At Sone bridge, the Nizamabad-Adilabad border, MIM activists led by its elected representatives attempted to disrupt the convoy procession and order was restored after some time. Two MIM MLAs and MLCS were later detained at the Sone police station. And when the convoy reached Nirmal town, three MIM MLAs led by Afsar Khan were waiting there. According to reports, these legislators were also detained. MIM has called for a bandh in the region on Wednesday. Waiting gets on Akbar’s nerves
Hyderabad: Things finally moved on Tuesday after chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy, who has been maintaining a studious silence on the issue despite the national clamour for Akbaruddin’s arrest, secured clearance from the Congress high command in the morning to go ahead with the arrest. After getting the green signal, the chief minister called on governor E S L Narasimhan and then summoned DGP Dinesh Reddy to his office.
In the meantime, the Nirmal police had brought the MIM MLA to Gandhi Hospital for a medical test in the morning and the legislator’s arrest was finally shown at 5 pm. “Tired of being made to sit around, an exasperated Akbaruddin had told the cops a few minutes earlier to either arrest him or let him go home,” said police sources.
Throughout the day, scores of MIM supporters including MLAs gathered outside Gandhi Hospital in Hyderabad and the restless and angry cadres grew violent at least on two occasions and damaged an RTC bus. After Warangal range IG AB Venkateshwar Rao announced Akbaruddin’s arrest at 5.45 pm and when the MLA was being brought out in a bulletproof vehicle from the hospital premises to be taken to Nirmal, MIM cadres grew violent and tried to converge on the convoy. The cops then had to resort to lathicharge to disperse the protesters.
Apprehending trouble en route, Nirmal police imposed section 144 and set up checkpoints across the town to prevent any kind of untoward incidents. In Hyderabad, all police personnel in the city have been asked to remain on duty, while patrolling was intensified in communally-sensitive Old City. Over 100 history-sheeters were rounded up at several areas in the city as a precautionary measure and the cops expect the tense situation to prevail on Wednesday as well.
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