UP Police come under fire for briefly detaining the mentally unstable septuagenarian woman
Team Clarion
NEW DELHI – A septuagenarian woman was booked and briefly detained on Monday for offering namaz near the office of the District Magistrate in Uttar Pradesh’s Hamirpur district.
The police took action against 71-year-old Munni after a video of her prostration went viral on social media. The woman was detained by the police but released later after it was found she was mentally unstable.
In a press statement, an official said: “Today on 31-3-2025, news of a woman offering namaz in the premises of the District Magistrate’s office in Hamirpur was published through various social media. Taking this news seriously, on the instruction of the District Magistrate, the Sub-District Magistrate Sadar has registered a case against the woman and further legal action is being taken”.
The home guards on duty at the DM’s office were suspended for negligence.
“Questioning of the woman revealed that she was mentally unstable. In the case, instructions have been given to take action for suspension against the on-duty home guards Ramkishore, Kamta, Pannalal, Mansingh and Girijavati, Rakhi and Meena Devi on charges of negligence of duty,” the statement noted.
The woman, a resident of the Sufiganj area of the city, has been undergoing medical treatment for the last four years. Her son is a daily wage labourer, her relatives said.
Hamirpur Superintendent of Police Deeksha Sharma said that after the video surfaced, a case was registered on charges of trespassing. The woman was later identified, and it was found that she was mentally unstable.
The police said that action was taken swiftly after the video of the woman covering her head and offering namaz went viral.
The police have faced flak for registering an FIR on mere prostrating in front of the DM office.
“You got to have a petty mindset to file an FIR for this. UP Police do not have anything better to do? All pending cases have been solved?” posted journalist Vajaita Singh.
A social media activist Asif Khan said: “The same UP police that showers rose petals on Kanwariyas is registering an FIR against a Muslim woman for praying namaz”.
Condemning the police action against the woman, a social media user, Tanpreet Sehgal, said: “You have to be exceptionally evil to not only have a problem with this but also file a criminal FIR against this woman. BJP-RSS govt is not even hiding anymore how we have become an apartheid Hindutva state. It’s just their educated upper caste supporters still living in denial”.
The police in Uttar Pradesh have been super active in penalising Muslims for offering namaz in the open. During the recent Eid Al-Fitr celebrations, the police had issued warnings against offering namaz in open spaces, even threatening to cancel passports and driving licenses of those found guilty.
