VHP disassociates itself from arrested cow vigilante Bittu Bajrangi

The Vishva Hindu Parishad on Wednesday disassociated itself from cow vigilante Bittu Bajrangi arrested in connection with the communal clashes in Haryana's Nuh district.

"Raj Kumar alias Bittu Bajrangi, who is said to be a Bajrang Dal worker, has never had any relation with Bajrang Dal. The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) also does not consider the content of the video allegedly released by him to be appropriate," the right-wing outfit said in a statement.

Bajrang Dal is the youth wing of the VHP.

Bajrangi was arrested on Tuesday in connection with the communal clashes that erupted in Nuh on July 31, police said.

He was questioned in connection with a fresh FIR registered against him and 15-20 others at Nuh's Sadar Police Station based on a complaint filed by Assistant Superintendent of Police Usha Kundu.

Police said Bajrangi, the president of an outfit called the Goraksha Bajrang Force, was initially detained by a Crime Investigation Agency team of Tauru from Faridabad and taken for questioning.

A spokesperson of Nuh Police later said he had been arrested and would be produced in a city court on Wednesday.

The FIR against Bajrangi and the others has been registered under Indian Penal Code sections 148 (riots), 149 (unlawful assembly), 332 (causing hurt), 353, 186 (obstructing a public servant from discharging duty), 395, 397 (armed robbery), and 506 (criminal intimidation) and provisions of the Arms Act, police said.

A senior police officer said Bajrangi and his associates wielded illegal weapons during the VHP procession that came under attack in Muslim-majority Nuh on July 31.

Six people, including two home guards and a cleric, died in the clashes that also spread to nearby regions.