Uttarakhand Police have booked four people for allegedly posting and commenting on Facebook about the Dharali flash floods in a manner aimed at stoking communal tension, officials said Saturday.
The FIRs were registered at Kotwali police station in Dehradun on Friday after police took suo motu cognisance of the posts, sub-inspector Vikky Tamta told PTI. One of the accused allegedly uploaded before-and-after photographs of Dharali village with the caption, “Disaster in Dharali village… nature’s bulldozer.”
Three others allegedly responded with provocative comments, including remarks about religious structures. The posts were deemed to be aimed at hurting religious sentiments and spreading misinformation.
According to the Times of India, the accused have been booked under sections 299 (deliberate acts to outrage religious feelings) and 353(2) (circulating false information with intent to promote enmity) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Kotwali SHO Pradeep Pant said that efforts are underway to track and arrest them.
Dehradun Senior Superintendent of Police Ajai Singh warned of strict action against anyone spreading fake news about the Dharali disaster, adding that the state police’s social media team has already flagged several such posts.