Congress MLA from Bhopal Arif Masood further plunged into trouble on Tuesday, as a special court in Bhopal issued an arrest warrant against him over an inflammatory speech delivered recently.
Masood, Congress MLA from Bhopal Madhya seat, had led a protest of over 2,000 persons at Iqbal Maidan recently, against French president Emanuel Macron’s alleged remarks against Prophet Mohammed.
The MLA and several others were booked for violating Covid19 guidelines in the protest and later Masood was also booked by police for delivering an instigating speech at the gathering.
Six of those booked by police in the case have been arrested while Masood who was away campaigning for Bihar Assembly polls has remained elusive for police till now.
Talaiya police of Bhopal on Tuesday moved an application in the special court of judge Pravendra Kumar Singh under sections 82 and 83 and the judge after hearing the pleas issued orders for issuance of an arrest warrant against Masood.
Notably, a local court on Nov 8 had rejected the anticipatory bail plea moved by Masood.
SHO DP Singh of Talaiya police station said that Masood and his aides have two cases lodged against them in his police station. In one of the cases, Masood has secured bail but in another one, of offering provocative speech, Masood has a case lodged against him under section 153 of IPC, a non-bailable section.
Masood’s lawyer however had pleaded in the court that two FIRs cannot be lodged in a single incident.
The judge while rejecting his bail plea had observed that the MLA had committed two offences, one by holding protest without permission from the collector and the another one was that of offering provocative speech to instigate anguish between two communities.