Mumbai: An altercation with some Muslim youths led Vijay Gavhane to allegedly plant gelatin sticks inside a mosque in Maharashtra’s Beed district in the early hours of Sunday, ThePrint has learnt.
The 21-year-old from Ardhamasla village, was arrested on charges of destruction of places of worship, outraging religious feelings of a class, promoting enmity or hatred between different groups based on religion, among others, on Sunday. Gavhane has no prior criminal record except for a minor traffic violation, police sources said.
The blast had damaged the mosque’s windows, doors, and fans, but nobody was injured.
In a reel on his Instagram story, Gavhane had sat smoking in front of a bundle of gelatin sticks as a Marathi song played in the background. The lyrics translate to: “One should stay within limits. I am not less. I am the fire”. The reel was uploaded to his Instagram account but has since been deleted. The police caught him after watching the reel.
The police also arrested Gavhane’s friend Ashok Sagde. The police sources told ThePrint that Sagde, prima facie, was not the mastermind but helped Gavhane film the video and assisted him.
“Prima facie, it looks like what he has done is out of anger and revenge. We are investigating the matter further and will see if there is any other angle to this. He knew how to use gelatin sticks because he used them professionally, and the other person, his friend, helped him in this activity,” Beed Superintendent of Police (SP) Navneet Kanwat told ThePrint.
The police have charged the duo under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Explosive Substances Act.
The entire village is surprised at the incident, the police said, because locals say that there is peace and harmony among Hindus and Muslims.
On Saturday, 29 March, as in every other year, a programme, ‘Sandal’ was organised around 9.30 p.m. at a dargah in the village. Ardhamasla villagers and those from around the village come and watch the programme.
At this programme, an altercation broke out, with Gavhane and Sagde on one side and the Muslim youths on the other side. Slurs, according to the FIR, were hurled. Gavhane allegedly said: “Why is a mosque being built here? Destroy it, or else we will destroy it.”
The Mecca Masjid mosque, where the blast happened, was close to the dargah that Gavhane mentioned. The villagers intervened, and the youths then went home. Around 2.30 am, Rashid Sayyad, a villager and complainant in the case, woke up because of the noise from the blast.
The villagers, according to the FIR, saw Gavhane and Sagde running from the spot.
The police said Gavhane, who failed his Class X exam, used to work in the village, digging up wells when required. “It is there that they use the gelatin sticks for explosions, and he was well-versed with the usage of the gelatin sticks,” said a senior police officer.
According to the officer, Gavhane does not have a communal history and also has friends in the Muslim community. His father used to work as a cleaner in the mosque. However, during the preliminary investigation, he revealed to the police that he used to be bothered by the sound from the mosque during namaz.
The police also said that his actions could be an angry reaction to a fight he had with some Muslim youths outside the mosque on Saturday night. “He just knew how to use gelatin sticks, and that is what he did. His motive could be revenge, prima facie, it looks like,” the officer said.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
Also Read: How VHP, Bajrang Dal protests over Aurangzeb’s tomb spiralled into a night of mayhem in Nagpur