New Delhi/Ghaziabad: A Ghaziabad court on Thursday sent Shahnawaz Khan alias Baddo, the key accused in abetting religious conversion of youths through online gaming app to three-day police custody.
During the hearing, court held the application seeking police custody for Baddo. It was learnt that the police has prepared a list of questions for Baddo that will be asked during his custodial remand. Police expect that after interrogating Baddo, there would be many more revelations in this case.
The major area of concern for police is Baddo's Pakistani connection as 30 Pakistani numbers were recovered from his mobile. Baddo was brought by the police to Ghaziabad on transit remand from Maharashtra last week.
The case came to light after a businessman from Ghaziabad's Kavinagar area complained that Baddo unlawfully converted his 17-year-old son to Islam through an online gaming app. On May 30, the man lodged a police complaint stating that his son was doing "strange things" and went to the religious place of a particular community, where he stayed for a long time. Based on the man's complaint, police registered a case and arrested Maulana Abdul Rehman from Sanjay Nagar of Kavi Nagar area on June 4.
Rehman admitted that he was in contact with the boy and had contacted him through an online gaming app. He said that the boy was asked to recite verses on the pretext of winning the game. The police tracked Baddo's location to Maharashtra. June 7, the National Commission for Child Rights and Protection wrote a letter to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting seeking investigation into the online gaming apps. Immediately after which, the news started trending on Twitter.
Also Read: UP conversion case: Prime accused Shahnawaz Khan arrested from Maharashtra
Baddo was caught from a lodge in Alibaug in Maharashtra on June 11 and was produced in the Thane court the next day. The court granted Baddo's transit remand to Uttar Pradesh police. Later, Ghaziabad court sent Baddo to 14-day judicial custody.
During a previous interrogation, Baddo had accepted his Pakistani connection. Police are now trying to find out the details of those phone numbers that were recovered from his mobile. Also, the transactions in his bank accounts are being probed, police said. The cyber team of the police is working on the case. Ghaziabad DCP Nipun Aggarwal said that action will be taken against Baddo under the National Security Act.
