In the old city, particularly at the Mecca Masjid, the Friday prayers concluded peacefully under tight security arrangements.
For a while, a handful of youth raised slogans against Goshamahal legislator T Raja Singh outside the Mecca Masjid before dispersing. To foil any attempt to create trouble, Rapid Action Force and Task Force teams were deployed. To supervise the arrangements, senior police officials, including the DCP (South), were present at Charminar.
Some police officers were supervised by officials who had previously worked in the old city. Additionally, plainclothes policemen were deployed to identify troublemakers.
In an appeal to the public, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi pleaded for attendance at Friday prayers near their houses and for peace to prevail.
The trouble began earlier this week after Raja Singh made derogatory comments about Prophet Mohammed. Police detained him at Central Prison at Cherlapally on Thursday under the PD Act.
Following Singh’s arrest under the PD Act, tight security arrangements have been put in place in Goshamahal, Tappachabutra, Habeebnagar, Mangalhat, and Jummerat Bazaar.
The communally sensitive old city has been on edge since Raja Singh made derogatory comments in a video posted online on Monday. Protests erupted across the country the same night, demanding his arrest
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Raja Singh remained unapologetic however and stated that he will continue to release videos. Because of the ongoing protests, the state government was under pressure to take harsh action against the MLA.
On Thursday, he was arrested. The Preventive Detention (PD) Act was invoked by Hyderabad Police Commissioner C. V. Anand against Raja Singh, a rowdy sheeter within the Mangalhat police station limits. He was transferred to Cherlapally jail.
As per the police, Raja Singh has a habit of delivering provocative and inflammatory speeches, causing a schism between communities and resulting in public disorder.
Since 2004, a total of 101 criminal cases have been filed against him. He was charged with 18 communal offenses within the jurisdiction of various police stations in Hyderabad.
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