An incident of unrest unfolded on the night of 5 March in Khandwa when a large crowd gathered outside Moghat Police Station over an alleged blasphemous post about Prophet Muhammad circulating on Instagram.
According to reports, a local resident, Mujahideen Qureshi, visited the police station to file a complaint claiming that the post had hurt religious sentiments.
Soon after the complaint was lodged, a large number of people assembled outside the station premises and began raising slogans while demanding immediate action against the accused.
Police officials stated that a case was quickly registered and the person accused of posting the controversial content was detained.
Authorities said legal action was initiated under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Despite assurances from the police that the matter was being handled legally, sections of the crowd reportedly became aggressive and began creating a ruckus outside the station.
The situation escalated when members of the Islamist mob began pelting stones and attempted to storm Moghat Police Station.
During the chaos, police personnel were pushed and manhandled. Reports indicate that the station’s officer-in-charge, Dhiresh Dharwal, was grabbed by the collar by individuals in the crowd.
As tensions rose, police called in additional forces and used mild force to disperse the gathering.
Amid the disturbance, a woman passing through the area was allegedly assaulted by members of the mob.
According to her complaint, around 8-10 individuals misbehaved with her and physically attacked her, leaving her with a head injury and swelling on her face.
The injured woman later reached the police station and narrated the incident, following which police registered a separate case and detained several suspects.
After restoring control of the situation, police registered a case against 47 individuals, including 22 named accused and 25 unidentified persons, for allegedly attacking the police station and disturbing public order.
Speaking on the matter, Mahendra Taranekar, Additional Superintendent of Police in Khandwa, confirmed that the controversial social media post had led people to gather at the station to file a complaint.
He added that multiple officers, including three station house officers and the city’s Superintendent of Police, were deployed to bring the situation under control.
To ensure peace and reassure residents, Khandwa Police conducted a flag march in the affected area and appealed to citizens to avoid reacting to inflammatory social media posts.
