SP to felicitate Muslim woman who stood before pistol wielding cop during UP bypolls

Lucknow: A Muslim woman, who reportedly stood fearlessly before a cop, who pointed his pistol at her while she was on way to exercise her franchise during polling at Meerapur assembly seat in Muzaffarnagar district and allegedly forced her to return without casting her vote, would be felicitated by the Samajwadi Party (SP).

The woman, identified as Tauheeda, a resident of Kakrauli, shot into limelight after a photograph showing her challenging SHO Kakrauli Rajiv Sharma, who was seen pointing his pistol at her, went viral on social media.

The photograph appeared amid allegations by the SP that the police prevented the Muslims from exercising their franchise at many places during the recently held by-polls in nine assembly constituencies on Wednesday.

Incidentally Tauheeda was among those booked by the cops for allegedly resorting to violence during the polling.

District SP president Zia Chaudhary and other prominent local party leaders met Tauheeda and said that she would be felicitated by party president Akhilesh Yadav.

Tauheeda, whose husband was a driver, said that she was prevented from exercising her franchise by the cops. ‘’I am not afraid of bullets.....I was not allowed to vote,’’ she said.

The SP has alleged that the cops lifted veils of burqa clad Muslim women to check their identity and also stopped Muslims from proceeding to the polling centres to exercise their franchise.

Several videos had emerged on social media purportedly showing the police officials checking the identity of Muslim women by lifting their veils.

An angry Akhilesh asked his supporters to take photographs of the officials who prevented them from voting.

‘’If the EC exists, it should take note of these incidents and act forthwith,’’ he had said in a post on social media. Soon after the UP police responded saying that concerned police officials, who were found to be checking the IDs, had been suspended.