In two days since the Supreme Court delivered its verdict on Ayodhya issue on Saturday, the Uttar Pradesh police has arrested 77 people across the state for allegedly trying to vitiate communal harmony in the state through social media posts, police said on Sunday.
Meanwhile, eight people were arrested in Seoni and two in Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh for posting objectionable messages on social media and bursting crackers after the top court delivered the verdict, officials said.
After the apex court's verdict on the Ayodhya issue, a total of 34 cases have been registered and 77 persons arrested so far in the state of Uttar Pradesh, said a statement by police in Lucknow.
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Action has been taken against 8,275 posts including 4,563 posts on Sunday. These posts were put on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, it said.
In Gwalior, Dinesh Singh Chauhan (27) was arrested on Saturday night after his objectionable Whatsapp post was found by a police team monitoring social media chats, said Bahodapur police station in-charge YS Tomar.
"On Saturday evening, we received a screenshot of the inflammatory post. Based on that, we arrested Chauhan, a resident of Rampuri locality, under section 188 of the IPC for showing disobedience to an official order, and section 153, which deals with a provocation to cause a riot" he added.
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Several other objectionable posts from a WhatsApp group called 'Hindu Sena' were found on Chauhan's mobile phone, he said.
In the second incident in Gwalior, jail warden Mahesh Awad was suspended for the bursting of crackers in Chhaoni area despite a ban on such post-verdict activities by district authorities.
"After we got information about Awad bursting crackers post the Ayodhya verdict, we suspended him," said Gwalior Central Jail Superintendent Manoj Kumar Sahu said.
In Seoni district, Chhapara police arrested WhatsApp group administrator Radhe Gajjam and one Ranjit Singh while Kotwali arrested four people identified as Rajesh Jain, Aishwary Potdar, Vivek Baghel and Pankaj Jethani, MP Public Relations Department officer Rajesh Parte said.
Parte said Keolari police arrested Raj Rajput and Santosh Janghela for posting objectionable messages on WhatsApp after the Ayodhya verdict.
He said police action came under relevant provisions of Information Technology Act.
The Supreme Court in a unanimous verdict on Saturday cleared the way for the construction of a Ram Temple at the disputed site at Ayodhya and directed the Centre to allot a
5-acre plot to the Sunni Waqf Board for building a mosque.
