A year after 89 persons were arrested for allegedly indulging in violence at Karnataka’s Hubbali, families of many of them claim their relatives are ‘innocent,’ insist they are unable to go through the bail procedures since they are illiterate and that they would boycott the May 10 Assembly polls if the accused “who did nothing wrong” are not released.
In April last year, 89 people were arrested after a mob went on the rampage over a social media post that saw a police station and a Hanuman temple coming under attack.
The violence was allegedly triggered following a social media post of a digitally altered image of a saffron flag flying over a mosque.
Some of the families of those who are still in jail claim their children and relatives were ‘innocent’ and had “no role to play in the violence”.
“Most of them who were arrested, were picked up by the police randomly. We are illiterate. We do not know how to apply for bail or approach the court to get our children released,” some of the local residents said.
Mumtaz from Nava Anand Nagar in Hubbali, whose son was among the arrested and currently lodged in Kalaburagi jail, said she couldn’t meet him in the last one year.
Claiming her son was not guilty, Mumtaz said she will not cast her vote until her ward is released from prison.
“My son used to drive an autorickshaw in Hubbali. The police arrested and took him to Kalaburagi jail and since then, I haven’t heard his voice. It has been more than a year now. My son was innocent.
I will not cast my vote until my son is released from jail,” Mumtaz told the media.
The incident in Hubbali was the fallout of the alleged social media post, which others objected to and lodged a police complaint. Subsequently, the person who made the post was arrested after a case was registered.
According to the family members of the accused, those who are lodged in the jail had written a letter to their community leaders, urging them to convey their message to the Centre and release them at the earlies
