By Saurabh Sharma and Fayaz Bukhari
LUCKNOW/SRINAGAR, India -Police confronted stone-throwing crowds in at the very least two Indian cities on Friday as crowds protested in lots of areas of the nation over derogatory remarks concerning the Prophet Mohammad made by two former members of the ruling celebration.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s authorities has confronted a backlash from Muslims at dwelling and overseas, together with from quite a few Gulf international locations, after two officers from his Bharatiya Janata Occasion (BJP) commented in late Could and earlier this month on the prophet’s personal life.
One in every of them, spokeswoman Nupur Sharma, has been suspended and the opposite official has been expelled by the celebration.
That has not calmed anger within the newest occasion of what some within the minority Muslim group see as elevated strain below the rule of the Hindu nationalist BJP on points starting from freedom of worship to the sporting of hijab head scarves.
Within the Uttar Pradesh metropolis of Prayagraj, riot police with shields charged and fired tear fuel at crowds on Friday in a road strewn with damaged bricks and stones, video footage from Reuters accomplice ANI confirmed.
A complete of 109 individuals have been arrested from completely different districts of Uttar Pradesh by the police for his or her alleged position within the protests right this moment, stated Prashant Kumar, a senior Uttar Pradesh police official.
In Jharkhand’s capital Ranchi, protesters hurled stones at police and injured some officers, senior police official Anis Gupta instructed Reuters by telephone, including the state of affairs was now below management.
Protests in different cities and city remained peaceable.
Within the Muslim-majority area of Kashmir, small teams gathered in dozens of areas, a few of them elevating slogans towards the fired BJP officers.
Authorities within the restive territory, which can be claimed by neighbouring Pakistan, reduce off cellular web connections to forestall any violence, a police official stated.
In Ahmedabad, the principle metropolis in Modi’s dwelling state of Gujarat, protesters together with youngsters marched holding posters of the 2 BJP officers and calling for police to arrest Sharma.
“Thus far, no strict motion has been taken towards Nupur Sharma,” stated protester Mohammad Jabir. “She needs to be arrested as quickly as attainable.”
Sharma was not out there for remark. She stated final week that she didn't intend to harm anybody’s spiritual emotions.
Police in New Delhi stated on Thursday stated they've filed a grievance towards Sharma and others for “inciting individuals on divisive strains” on social media.
The BJP has instructed officers to be “extraordinarily cautious” when speaking about faith on public platforms and has stated it doesn't promote insults towards any sect or faith.
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