Lucknow: Man offers namaz outside CM office, raises anti-Modi slogans
On Friday evening, a middle-aged man was arrested in Lucknow after he offered namaz on the busy road outside CM Secretariat office. The man, identified as Rafiq Ahmed, had a knife tucked at his waist and shouted anti-Modi slogans after his prayers. His actions led to a traffic jam in the posh area, and police acted soon. Here's more.
Man raised anti-Modi slogans, praised JD(U) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav
At around 7:30 PM, Rafiq tied a green stole over his head and offered prayers, in front of Gate no. 1 of the Annexe. While he raised anti-Modi slogans, he shouted words in praise of JD(U) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav. The incident was recorded on CCTV.
Here's the video
CM Adityanath was in a meeting when incident happened
Notably, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was presiding over a meeting with senior officials when the incident took place. Rafiq is a local cleric and was arrested for creating a nuisance and blocking the traffic. Lucknow's Senior Superintendent of police Kalanidhi Naithani took cognizance of the incident and directed that an FIR is lodged. "He was tracked and arrested. Further investigations are on," Naithani said.
For not removing man forcibly, two constables were suspended
Two constables were suspended for not stopping the man and letting him obstruct the traffic. For the 20 minutes that the incident lasted, security personnel and officers stationed in the area remained mute spectators. Hazratganj Circle Officer Abhay Mishra said, "The police personnel deployed at the CM's Secretariat said that the person started offering namaz, so they did not take any action."
