In a major development in the investigation of the 26 September Bareilley violence, the Bareilley Police recovered the original fake letter, which fueled the violence. The police came to know about the letter after interrogating the mastermind of the violence, Nadeem Khan. The letter was recovered in a search conducted at his house.
As per reports, Nadeem and his associate, Nafees, forged the signatures of a man named Liaqat on the letter. The letter contained a false appeal to Muslims not to gather at the Islamia ground in Bareilly, stating that the Ittehad-e-Millat Council (IMC) president, Maulana Tauqeer Raza, had withdrawn the decision to hold a gathering. The letter also contained Nadeem’s signature. Nadeem, along with 72 other accused, was arrested by the police on 30th September in connection with the ‘I Love Muhammad’ violent protests in Bareilly.
According to police, Nadeem admitted during the interrogation that he did sign the appeal to mislead the police. He later posted messages in various WhatsApp groups calling the signature and the appeal as fake and urging Muslims to gather in large numbers in the Islamia ground for ‘I Love Muhammad’ protests after Friday prayers on 26th September.
Massive pre-planned violent protests were carried out by a Muslim mob in Bareilly on 26th September after Friday prayer. The Muslim mob clashed with the police after the local administration refused to grant permission for holding a protest at the Islamia ground to maintain law and order. Several individuals were arrested by the police in connection with the violence, including Maulana Tauqeer Raza, who incited Muslims to gather for protests.