Bukhari and his entourage allegedly beat up Mohammed Wahid Chisti, editor of Urdu weekly Dastan-e-Awadh, after he reminded the maulana, who has been highly critical of the Ayodhya verdict, about his earlier stand that Muslims must respect the judgment.
Bukari's actions have enraged journalists in the state and a resolution demanding his arrest was passed at an emergency meeting of the Uttar Pradesh accredited correspondents committee in Lucknow. Committee president Hisam Siddiqui handed over a copy of the resolution to state Cabinet Secretary Shashank Shekhar Singh in the office of the chief minister on Friday evening.
On Thursday, a criminal case was registered at the Hazratganj police station against Bukhari, who had not only assaulted Chisti but also threatened him with dire consequences in full view of journalists and policemen. However, no action is being initiated against the Shahi Imam, so far. UP scribes have also issued an appeal to journalists across the country to boycott Bukhari.
At a press conference in Lucknow on Thursday morning, Bukhari questioned the authenticity of the Archaeological Survey of India report on which the Allahabad high court based its verdict. He said, "Shariat disallows setting up a butkhana (temple) inside a mosque." He accused the Centre of making an attempt to confuse the Muslims and hatching a conspiracy to mislead them.
