A day after unsubstantiated reports of a riot-like situation in some parts of Delhi created a panic situation in India’s national capital, the Delhi Police said on Monday that they had arrested 24 people in connection with rumour-mongering.
Of the 24 persons arrested, 21 are from Northwest district, two from Central district and one from Rohini district, news agency ANI reported. The police also said that it had initiated action against 18 people and registered in two cases.
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Close to 1900 phone calls were made to the Delhi Police on Sunday evening after reports of violence and trouble in some parts of the capital started trickling in. Most of these calls were made from West and Southeast Delhi.
With the capital yet to recover from the recent violence and riots in Northeast Delhi in which 46 people were killed, reports and suggestions of a “riot-like” situation in West Delhi on Sunday evening had set alarm bells ringing.
The Delhi Police refuted these reports and claims and stated that there was no unrest in the capital as was being rumoured.
Significantly, several senior officers had issued statements clearing the air on the matter. In fact, the Delhi Police stated that “concerted efforts were made over the evening by mischievous and anti-social elements to create panic in Delhi by spreading false rumours of rioting over various social media platforms”.
Social media accounts involved in spreading rumours and false information were being monintored and action would be taken against the guilty, the police have said.