A man who allegedly vandalized the Amar Jawan Jyoti memorial at Azad Maidan here has been arrested, police said Tuesday.
One of the two alleged rioters, who had vandalised the iconic Amar Jawan memorial during the August 11 violence here, was today arrested, taking the total number of arrests in the case to 54, police said today.
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"Abdul Quadir Mohammed Younus Ansari (19), an unemployed youth, was picked up from Sitamarhi in Bihar yesterday. Ansari, who had damaged the Amar Jawan Jyoti memorial, was preparing to flee to Nepal by crossing the border when he was apprehended," said Joint Police Commissioner (crime) Himanshu Roy.
Another accused Nazir Noor Mohammed (35), who had sustained bullet injury while clashing with policemen on the day of the violence, was nabbed after being discharged from the government-run J J hospital, police said. u00a0
Images of the two alleged rioters, including Ansari, were published in MiD DAY while they were desecrating the memorial. In the images, a furious Ansari was seen smashing the memorial with a bamboo.
"Ansari was brought here today and placed under arrest, following which he was produced before a local court which remanded him in police custody till September 4," Roy added.
Ansari, who hails from Bihar, had fled to this state in a train after his photograph was published in the newsAnsari's father is a religious leader, police said adding that he had attended a meeting in Jogeshwari area where he stayed before reaching to Azad Maidan.
"The meeting appeared to have been provoking," an officer said adding that the hunt for another accused who damaged the memorial was on.
So far, police have arrested 54 alleged rioters for the Azad Maidan mayhem, in which two persons were killed and over 50 were injured, including 44 policemen, when a rally called to protest the alleged atrocities on Muslims in Assam and Myanmar turned violent.
However, a metropolitan court yesterday discharged three of the accused arrested in connection with the violence after the crime branch moved an application saying that the investigation showed they were not the part of the violent mob.
On August 11, the protesters went on a rampage, attacking police, including women constables, torching media and police vans, smashing cameras of photo journalists and damaging buses.paper, to evade arrest, police said.u00a0