Two individuals, Tahar Singh and Om Prakash Mishra, both hailing from Gonda district, have been apprehended by the Uttar Pradesh Special Task Force (STF) for their alleged involvement in sending threatening letters. The letters targeted the Ayodhya Ram Temple, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and STF ADG Amitabh Yash. The STF has identified Devendra Tewari as the alleged mastermind behind these activities, claiming that he instructed Singh and Mishra to carry out the threats for political gains.
Despite facing multiple accusations in Lucknow, Tewari is purportedly evading legal consequences, according to an STF official who expressed confidence in capturing him soon. Tewari is believed to have orchestrated the entire operation and has reportedly received a pistol for personal protection due to previous threats against him.
The STF initiated its investigation on December 27, 2018, following information received from the DGP headquarters about threatening emails sent under aliases linked to the ISI terrorist organization. The investigation revealed that the threatening messages were sent through two email accounts, alamansarikhan608@gmail.com and zubairkhanisi199@gmail.com, which were traced back to Tahar Singh and Om Prakash Mishra. Both individuals were subsequently taken into custody.
During interrogation, the STF identified Devendra Tewari as the instigator, residing in Lucknow’s Banthra area. Tewari, facing multiple charges in various Lucknow police stations, allegedly directed Singh and Mishra to make threats on social media. Tewari is associated with the Indian Institute of Paramedical Sciences, where Mishra served as Singh’s personal secretary.
According to the STF statement, at Tewari’s behest, Tahar Singh created the fake email accounts, and the passwords were shared with Om Prakash Mishra via WhatsApp. The two phones used to send the threats were purchased from a shop in Naka Hindola, Lucknow. Tewari allegedly posted the threats on November 19 and December 27 using his Twitter account, after which he destroyed the phones by setting them on fire. The WiFi used for sending the emails was traced back to Tewari’s office.
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The charges against the individuals include Sections 153-A, 506, and 507 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), addressing hate propagation among different groups based on religion, criminal intimidation, and criminal conspiracy, respectively. Deception (Section 420) and forgery (Section 471) are dealt with separately, along with criminal conspiracy (Section 201) and the tampering of evidence (Section 120-B).
