‘I love Muhammed’ row: Police lathicharge protesters in UP's Bareilly after stone pelting | Videos

District Magistrate Avinash Singh later told reporters that the "situation is now normal and under control".

Police and locals clashed on Friday outside a mosque in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly after prayers, as several protesters gathered in support of the "I Love Muhammad" campaign.

'I Love Muhammed' row: Police said that crowds gathered near the mosque and outside the cleric's residence in the Kotwali area.(PTI)

The gathering on the campaign had occurred on the call of a local cleric and Ittehad-e-Millar Council chief Maulana Tauqeer Raza. Police said that crowds gathered near the Ala Hazrat Dargah and outside the cleric's residence in the Kotwali area. holding placards of ‘I Love Muhammed’.

Visuals from the area showed locals clashing with the police. As the protesters pelted stones during the demonstration, security personnel lathi-charged the crowd to disperse them from the area.

Some protesters were even detained by the police during the 'I love Muhammed' protest.

District Magistrate Avinash Singh later told reporters that the "situation is now normal and under control". He added that, "No untoward incident has been reported. We are appealing to people to maintain peace and harmony."

IG Ajay Sahni told news agency ANI that some "miscreants" came out onto the streets shouting slogans when the security force was conducting a flag march in the area.

Sahni said that videos of the protest and the stone pelting have also been recorded.

"We are all on the streets. There is complete peace. There is no disorder of any kind," he said, adding that the arrests of the miscreants will be ensured. Sahni said that the strict action, which will be taken by the police, will serve as an example so that such acts are never repeated.

After the situation calmed down, the police force once again was seen conducting a flag march in the area.

What is the ‘I Love Muhammed’ controversy?

The 'I Love Muhammed' controversy dates back to September 9, when the Kanpur police filed an FIR against nine named and 15 unidentified persons for allegedly displaying boards of 'I Love Muhammed' slogans on a public road during a Barawafat procession on September 4.

Several Hindu organisations objected to the move and termed it a "new trend", alleging that this was a deliberate provocation.

The row further escalated after AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi asserted that saying 'I Love Muhammed' was not a crime, asking why such expressions of faith should be seen as provocative.

Leaders react to Bareilly protest

UP minister Anil Rajbhar condemned the 'I Love Muhammed' protests in Bareilly and said that "these are people with a mindset that cannot digest India's and UP's development".

Speaking to news agency ANI, Rajbhar said that since their attempts failed, a "riot-fueled mentality" has taken hold today.

"However, I want to assure those with this mindset that if anyone commits such an act or attempts to disrupt UP's peace, the government will deal with them firmly. We will take such action that even their future generations will remember it," he added.

State minister Asim Arun, meanwhile, said that any kind of religious or cultural event should only take place after obtaining due permission.

"Any procession viewed as a show of strength is detrimental to the country, and divisive elements try to take India in this direction. But our government, police, and administration know how to deal with them," he told reporters.

Meanwhile, UP Congress president Ajay Rai said that everyone should love their God. "I love Muhammed. I love Mahadev. I love Ganesh Ji. I love Jesus Christ. I love Guru Nanak. I love Gautam Buddha. I love Mahavira," he told ANI.

Samajwadi Party leader told news agency PTI that Bareilly police's use of lathi charge, "injured many people".

"The BJP should not have any problem if anyone says ‘I love Mohammad.’ Similarly, anyone can say ‘I love Krishna’ or ‘I love Mahakal.’ People are free to express themselves. It is the intention of this government to target certain individuals and carry out lathi charges brutally," he added.

State minister Jaiveer Singh said that the purpose of the 'I Love Muhammed' campaign is known to everyone. "When no case has been registered against I Love Mohammad', then such talk is extremely worrying, misleading, and a deliberate conspiracy to disturb the peace and order is being carried out by some people," he told ANI.

Minister Sanjay Kumar Nishad also condemned the protest and said that it is wrong to take out any procession without permission, "to spread religious frenzy, and to do politics on this".

RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav took a jibe at the state government and the Bharatiya Janata Party, saying that the party "is number on inciting violence. Whenever news comes from UP, it's always of this nature".