According to the police officer, the accused were acting on the instructions of the Pakistani handlers of some terror outfits to disrupt the Friday prayers

New Delhi: The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Saturday arrested 13 persons and booked them for sedition for allegedly raising ‘anti-national’ slogans inside Jamia Masjid in Srinagar.

According to police, the accused raised the slogans during the end of the Friday prayers at Jamia Masjid in Nowhatta area of the city. There were around 24,000 people present in the congregation, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Srinagar Rakesh Balwal said.

"About a dozen persons started anti-national and provocative sloganeering for a while. They were joined by a few others even though most of the gathering remained aloof,” news agency PTI quoted the SSP as saying.

He added, “There was also an altercation between the persons indulging in sloganeering and the volunteers of Intezamia (managing) Committee of the mosque who tried to stop the sloganeering and hooliganism.”

According to the police officer, the accused were acting on the instructions of the Pakistani handlers of some terror outfits to disrupt the Friday prayers and disturb the law and order.

As they started raising the slogans, it led to clashes between them and those present in the mosque. They were finally evicted, Balwal said.

"Even after coming outside, more than a dozen of them tried to provoke others by continuing to raise the provocative slogans but failed. They then dispersed seeing the police presence around,” he said.

During interrogation, the names of two other instigators came up - Basharat Nabi Bhat, resident of Hawal, and Umar Manzoor Sheikh, resident of Bahuddin Saab, Nowhatta – who were later arrested.

The arrested accused have been booked under sections 124A (sedition) and 447 (criminal trespass) of the Indian Penal Code at the Nowhatta police station. In addition to sedition charge, they will also be booked under the Public Safety Act (PSA), Balwal added.

The officer said that several other suspected ones are currently being interrogated and will be formally arrested as soon as their involvement in this case is proved.

The investigation in this case is underway and some more arrests are likely, Balwal said.

The SSP warned that Srinagar police takes law and order situation very seriously and those who attempt to disrupt peace will be facing stringent action.

He also added that no attempt at using religious places for propagating anti-national agenda will be tolerated.

He also advised the parents to monitor the company of their children as indulging in such activities may cause irreparable damage to their future.