Hyderabad: Goshamahal MLA T Raja Singh on Thursday was arrested by Hyderabad police under the Preventive Detention Act (PD Act).
Post the arrest, he was taken to the Gandhi Hospital for the sake of a medical checkup.
“He is being lodged in Central Prison, Cherlapally,” the police informed.
The Preventive Detention Act also known as PD Act is a law that is invoked by the police on habitual and notorious offenders to keep them locked in jail for a period of one year. The Act is invoked against culprits because they are believed to be a threat to society.
“The detenu T. Raja Singh Lodh has been habitually delivering provocative and inflammatory speeches and driving a wedge between communities leading to public disorder. The proposed detenu Raja Singh posted online an offensive video on 22nd August 2022 on “Shree Ram Channel, Telangana” with the title “Faruqui K Aaka Itihaas Suniye” on YouTube against the Prophet Mohammed, who is venerated by the Muslim community with an intention to provoke all sections of people and thereby cause a breach of peace and public tranquillity. The proposed detenu commented very blasphemously against Prophet Mohammed and his lifestyle,” the police said in its press note.
“Any venomous hate speech has the potential of provoking individuals to commit acts of riot, indiscriminate violence, terrorism, etc. Offensive speech has real and devastating effects on people’s lives and risks their health and safety and severely affects fraternity, the dignity of individuals, unity, and national integration, and also offends the fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India,” they further said.
The city police further said that protests erupted in different parts of Hyderabad City and other parts of the Telangana State and drove a wedge between communities and disturbed the peaceful nature of Hyderabad and Telangana State due to Raja Singh’s remarks.
“Sensing danger to the life and properties in the hands of the protestors, people got panicky and closed their shops and establishments. The entire population of the city and the state went into a grip of fear and shock by his activity. By his blasphemous utterances, the proposed detenu has been continuously creating hatred and ill-will between major communities resulting in widespread unrest among the people within the limits of Hyderabad City Police Commissionerate and in other parts of Telangana State, thereby adversely affecting the maintenance of public order. He has been continuously causing widespread fear, unrest, and panic among the general public for a long period of time by committing such offences and acting in a manner prejudicial to the maintenance of public order apart from disturbing the peace, tranquillity, and communal harmony in the society,” the city police said.
“The records disclose that out of the total of 101 criminal cases registered against him since 2004, he was involved in (18) communal offences in different police stations of Hyderabad City Police Commissionerate apart from several other cases. The Mangalhat police has executed the P.D order on him on 25-08-2022 and he is being lodged in Central Prison, Cherlapally, Hyderabad,” they informed.
Not afraid of bullets, hanging, or jail: Raja Singh
Just before his arrest, Raja Singh put out a video on Twitter saying that he is not afraid of ‘bullets, hanging, or jail and will keep fighting for the sake of ‘Dharma’.
“Just got the information that now or in the evening I will be arrested by the police. The chief minister has ordered the police to jail me by any means, even by digging out all the old cases. They want me to be banished or be arrested by the PD act. I want to tell him that I am neither scared of bullets, hanging nor jail and I will keep fighting for the sake of Dharma. If somebody insults my God, I cannot accept it. Crores of Hindus will respond in the manner that they understand,” he said.
