Torn Quran returned to masjid

This was to ensure peace in area; pages are evidence, can't be buried as is custom: Police

The Uttar Pradesh Police on Tuesday returned the torn pages of the Quran to the Rafiqabad Masjid muezzin, Abdul Qadir. Though police remained tight-lipped over handing the pages back to Qadir, senior officers admitted that it was returned to maintain "law and order" in Masuri.

Qadir told Newsline, "I was summoned to the Dasna police outpost around 8 pm on Tuesday, where a police officer handed me a sealed plastic bag containing the pages of the desecrated Quran."

He said police instructed him to keep the pages, which are evidence in case, safe in the Rafiqabad Masjid and to return them to police when required.

On September 14, pages of the Quran were found by the railway tracks near Masuri. These were taken to the Masuri police station, following which a huge crowd gathered and demanded immediate action. Within a few hours, the protesters turned violent and attacked the police station, killing six and injuring two dozen others.

The decision to hand the pages of the Quran into Rafiqabad Masjid's charge came after three days of debate over what should be done with them. Police authorities refused to comment on the issue, but a source in police said: "This was the safest way of maintaining peace and communal harmony in the region."

Sources said scholars and maulanas from the area were consulted before taking the decision.

According to senior officials, they had three options — bury the pages as is customary, keep the pages in the Masuri police station locker or return it to the masjid where it was first brought.

"We could not bury the pages since it is evidence in the case and we could not have kept it in the police station locker, as it would cause resentment. So, we decided to return the pages," a senior officer said.

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