PIONEER NEWS SERVICE/Haridwar/Dehradun
Scores of imposters were arrested by the police in Haridwar and Dehradun as part of Operation Kalnemi. These men were posing as ascetics and exploiting the religious sentiments and faith of the public, the police said. Among those arrested in Haridwar, more than half a dozen are non-Hindus.
Acting on directions of chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, who had recently announced the launch of Operation Kalnemi to nab those pretending to be ascetics to defraud the public, the police have been acting against such elements in various parts of the State. The Haridwar police have so far arrested more than 45 such imposters.
According to the police, all of these accused were dressed like ascetics and exploiting the faith of the general public. On the instructions of Haridwar senior superintendent of police Pramendra Singh Dobal, the police have been conducting checks in the urban and rural areas of Haridwar. As part of the action taken in the rural area, six persons were arrested in the area under the jurisdiction of the Kaliyar police station. These men are non-Hindus and hail from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal.
In the urban area, 13 men were arrested from the City Kotwali area and according to the police, some of them are known to be notorious frauds. Similarly, 18 frauds were arrested in the Shyampur police station area and these men hail from different States. Eight persons were also caught by the police in the Kankhal police station area. The police have clarified that action will be taken against all such imposters and that exploiting the religious sentiments of the public will not be tolerated.
In Dehradun, similar action was taken by the police on the instructions of SSP Ajai Singh. The police informed that 23 frauds were arrested from different police station areas on the second day of Operation Kalnemi in the district. The police said that those posing as ascetics to dupe the public, especially women and youths by claiming to be capable of solving their personal or domestic issues are being caught by the police. Such persons convince their targets and defraud them. The SSP has directed all police station in-charges to identify such persons and take strict legal action against them. The police informed that out of the 23 such imposters arrested in different police station areas on Saturday, 10 are from other States.
It is pertinent to mention here that considering the large number of pilgrimage sites in the State, the number of imposters posing as ascetics to exploit religious sentiments has increased in recent years. The presence of such elements rises during special religious occasions like the Kanwad Yatra which began on Friday. The chief minister and Bharatiya Janata Party have stressed that the State government is committed to preserving the original character of Uttarakhand and that Operation Kalnemi is part of the efforts being undertaken to ensure this.
