UP Police Send Notice To Twitter India Head Over Loni Assault Case

The development comes a day after the Ghaziabad Police booked a Samajwadi Party worker over the "communal video" of elderly Muslim man Abdul Samad alleging attack by some young men.

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Ghaziabad: The Ghaziabad Police has sent a legal notice to the Managing Director of Twitter India over a viral video of an elderly man in Loni being assaulted earlier this week with the intent of "provoking communal unrest".

Manish Maheshwari, Managing Director of Twitter in India, has been asked to come to the Police Station at Loni Border and record the statement within seven days, reported news agency ANI.

The development comes a day after the Ghaziabad Police booked a Samajwadi Party worker over the "communal video" of elderly Muslim man Abdul Samad alleging attack by some young men, with the FIR also mentioning that Facebook let the "misleading" clip circulate without making efforts to verify it.

The FIR, however, does not mention Facebook as an accused in the case in which opposition Samajwadi Party's worker Ummaid Pehelwan Idrisi has been charged with promoting enmity and breach of peace by circulating the video on social media and giving it a "communal colour".

The case was lodged at the Loni Border police station Wednesday evening, a day after the Ghaziabad police booked Twitter, a news website, some journalists, and opposition Congress politicians, in a separate FIR over the circulation of the video

What is the Loni incident?

On June 5, 72-year-old Sufi Abdul Samad Saifi was thrashed by six people. The assailants beat him and also chopped off his beard. A video of the attack went viral on social media a few days later and was shared by many.

On June 7, the elderly Muslim man lodged an FIR against unidentified persons. He was accompanied by local Samajwadi Party leader Ummed Pahalwan Idrisi. Later, the victim took part in a Facebook Live during which he alleged he was not only thrashed by the assailants, but also forced to chant 'Jai Shri Ram'.

What is the Ghaziabad Police stand?

Five accused -- Kalloo Gurjar, Parvesh Gurjar, Adil, Intezaar and Saddam alias Bauna -- have been arrested so far in connection with the attack on Saifi, Superintendent of Police (Ghaziabad Rural) Iraj Raja said on Wednesday.

The Ghaziabad police maintained that the incident took place because the accused were unhappy over the 'tabeez' (amulets) sold to them by Saifi. The police also ruled out any communal angle in the episode.

(With agency inputs)