MP violence accused was in jail on Ram Navami, police justify house demolition citing his criminal record

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A woman claimed on Friday that authorities demolished her house after her son was named as accused in a case related to the violence that broke out in Sendhwa town of Madhya Pradesh on Ram Navami, even though he was in jail at the time.

Police officials conceded that Shahbaz, the accused, was in fact in prison on April 10, but justified the demolition claiming he was a "listed criminal of the area".
Shakeena, the woman, told reporters that her son was in jail on Ram Navami when communal violence erupted in Sendhwa in Barwani district.

His name was mentioned in the FIR about the riot mistakenly, and still local authorities demolished their house on Jogwada Road as part of crackdown against encroachment by those involved in the violence, she told reporters.

Local police officials admitted that Shahbaz was in jail, and said the FIR about the April 10 riot was registered on the basis of a complaint.

Barwani Superintendent of Police Deepak Kumar Shukla said it was a "matter of investigation" how Shabaz's name was mentioned in the FIR.

"Normally, police register a case on the basis of a complaint. But if we find that the name was mentioned erroneously, then it will be disposed of accordingly," he said.

Shukla, however, justified the demolition of Shahbaz's house, saying that it had been constructed illegally. Further, action under the National Security Act had been proposed recently against Shahbaz and an order to that effect was also issued, he said.

He was "a listed criminal of the area" and cases under Indian Penal Code sections 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) were registered against him, the SP said.

Muslim religious leaders in Madhya Pradesh had alleged earlier this week that members of the community were unfairly targeted by the authorities following the Ram Navami violence, and houses were demolished in some cases without due process.

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