Kalna: Arrested on charges of hurting religious sentiments for making a reel while climbing a parked ‘Rath’ wearing shoes on Sunday, two days after ‘Ulto Rath’ yatra, a court in East Burdwan’s Kalna granted bail to a Muslim youth with a condition that he must wash the steps of the chariot every day for a week in the presence of cops.Babulal Sheikh, in his early 30s and a resident of Siddhepada in Kalna’s Samudragarh, was arrested after Paschim Nasaratpur Harekrishna Namhatta Sangha alleged that he danced and recorded a reel wearing shoes on the steps of a chariot that was parked on STKK Road following the completion of ‘Ulto Rath’.The committee members saw the Facebook reel and lodged an FIR, Sangha secretary Jiten Mondal said. Nadanghat police station arrested Sheikh on Sunday night itself and booked him under BNS 196 (2), which deals with aggravated form of offence of promoting enmity between different groups, and BNS 299, which deals with deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings by insulting religion or religious beliefs.On Monday, Sheikh was produced before the court of the additional chief judicial magistrate in Kalna, where he was granted bail.During the hearing, it was argued that the investigating officer failed to serve the mandatory notice required before arrest in offences punishable with imprisonment below the prescribed threshold, despite the case being triable by a magistrate.Sheikh’s counsel Bikash Roy also contended that there was no communal disturbance arising from the incident and that there was no deliberate intention to insult any religion.Locals said Sheikh apologised in public for his act and even held his ears in repentance.The court condition, however, has sparked concerns. There were apprehensions in some sections that asking a Muslim youth to clean a Hindu religious chariot could trigger a fresh controversy.“Once we receive the court order, we will take adequate measures to comply with it and ensure that there is no law and order trouble,” said a senior officer of East Burdwan Police District.
