Muzaffarnagar: The Akhil Bhartiya Hindu Mahasabha’s UP president, Yogendra Verma, was allegedly assaulted by a group of people after he enquired about a couple’s religion on Saturday. The incident was reported from Mawana in Meerut district.Officials said that after Verma and his associates spotted a couple on a bike, they stopped the duo and enquired about their religion. However, soon, a crowd gathered there and a group of men allegedly thrashed the Mahasabha leader.Based on Verma’s complaint, a case was registered in the matter under IPC sections 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 147 (rioting).“We were near Mawana in Meerut when we spotted a couple in an objectionable position. When we tried to question them, the boy ran from there and entered a nearby factory. We tried to chase him, but were suddenly confronted by a large group of his supporters, who assaulted us. It was an interfaith couple and this is a case of ‘love jihad’,” Verma said.Speaking with TOI, Harisharan Sharma, station house officer of Nai Mandi police station, where the case was registered, said, “It is a case of assault. We have identified the accused. So far two people have been arrested and three others have been detained. We have come to know that it was an interfaith couple. Further investigation is on.”An eyewitness said that after stopping the couple, Verma and his associates insulted the duo, called up the girl’s parents and also attacked the boy. “That was when a crowd gathered there and assaulted Verma,” he said.

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