After a video of them pouring liquor on a Shivling went viral online, police on Sunday arrested two persons for hurting religious sentiments and sent them to judicial custody.
Both the accused Dinesh Kumar and Naresh Kumar are residents of New Indira Colony of Manimajra.
The video, shot near the Ghaggar river in Panchkula, went viral three days ago, following which some right-wing groups staged protests.
One of the group’s representatives lodged a police complaint at the IT Park police station on Friday.
Police said that before the arrest, Dinesh Kumar – his phone was used to record the video – had removed the video clip before confiscating it for forensic examination.
“The accused Dinesh and Naresh Kumar work in Anaj Mandi, Sector 26. He claimed during interrogation that he had gone for a walk in the Ghaggar river a few days back. They were intoxicated when they found broken pieces of Shivling on the bank of the river. They gathered it up and gleefully poured beer on it. Both claimed that a minor boy was present at the spot and they asked him to record his act. The boy made the video clip,” said a police officer.
Both were arrested under section 295A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs) of the Indian Penal Code.