Reibull: A professor at a central university in Biraspur district of Chhattisgarh was arrested on Thursday for a recent incident in which students allegedly attended the National Service Programme (NSS) camp were forced to recite Namaz.
Bilaspur police officer Rashmeet Kaur Chawla said Professor Dilip Jha of Guru Ghasidas Central University was detained.
Police said he, along with six other faculty members of the university, had earlier booked a student on the basis of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Chhattisgarh Religious Freedom Act to promote groups based on religion and to undermine religious sentiment.
According to police, 159 students attended the week-long NSS camp from March 26 to April, which was held by Shivtarai University at the Kota Police Department in the area.
The students were allegedly forced to provide yoga classes to Namaz during the camp on March 31 and caused their dissatisfaction.
The issue was caught in fierce controversy, with various Hindu institutions protesting on the incident.
The students later filed a complaint with the police.
After that, the principal of the Bilaspur District of police officer Rajneesh Singh formed a team of four to investigate the matter.
Police said FIR was submitted at the Kota Police Department on April 26, according to a report submitted by the investigation team.
In addition to Professor Jha, Dr. Madhulika Singh, Dr. Jyoti Verma. Police said Dr. Neeraj Kumari, Dr. Prashant Vaishnav, Dr. Suryabhan Singh and Dr. Basant Kumar, all faculty and staff, as well as the team core leader and student Ayushman Chaudhari, were involved in the incident.
Police said Professor Jia also faces allegations of trying to influence witnesses and establish a legal and order situation in the university.
