A huge crowd gathered outside the Ghatkopar police station in Mumbai on Sunday evening as Islamic preacher Mufti Salman Azhari was detained by the police in connection with a hate speech case registered in Gujarat. The Gujarat police had arrived in the city on Sunday and detained Azhari, bringing him to the Ghatkopar police station for official paperwork.

Upon hearing about Azhari’s detention, a crowd began to gather near the police station, demanding his release. Despite police requests, the crowd refused to disperse and allegedly blocked the road, causing traffic disruptions. The police were eventually forced to remove the crowd by making announcements over loudspeakers. Azhari’s supporters were demanding the release of the preacher.

As of late Sunday night, it was not confirmed whether Azhari had been arrested or was still under detention.

The arrest of two individuals by the Junagadh police in Gujarat on Saturday, following the circulation of a video containing an inflammatory speech allegedly delivered by Azhari, led to the hate speech case. The speech was given during an event held at an open ground in Junagadh on January 31. After the video went viral, an FIR was registered against Azhari and local organizers Mohammad Yousuf Malek and Azim Habib Odedara under sections 153B and 505(2) of the Indian Penal Code, which pertain to promoting enmity between religious groups and making statements that incite public mischief.

Many of Azhari’s supporters, mostly local youths, gathered on the main road outside the police station while Azhari was inside. The Gujarat police intended to take him to Junagadh for further proceedings related to the case.

Additional police forces from nearby stations and reserved police were called in to control the crowd, and there were reports of lathi charges to disperse the protesters. The situation escalated to the point where the traffic came to a standstill.

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