Maulana Sajid Rashidi, a Muslim cleric, has been booked for allegedly making objectionable and inflammatory remarks against Samajwadi Party MP Dimple Yadav during a televised debate. The FIR was registered at the Vibhuti Khand police station on Sunday evening based on a complaint filed by local resident Pravesh Yadav.
According to the complaint, the remarks were in response to Dimple Yadav’s recent visit to a mosque, during which Rashidi allegedly made inappropriate comments about her attire. The FIR describes the statements as derogatory, misogynistic, and highly provocative—aimed at inciting communal disharmony.
Pravesh Yadav stated that Rashidi’s remarks, aired on national television and circulated across social media, were an affront to a woman’s dignity and appeared to be a calculated attempt to stir unrest. “He made extremely offensive, anti-women comments against MP Dimple Yadav, wife of former UP CM Akhilesh Yadav, following her mosque visit on July 26,” the complaint read.
The FIR includes multiple sections under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including Section 79 (insult to the modesty of a woman), 196 (promoting enmity between groups), and 197 (prejudicial assertions against national integration). Provisions under the IT Act have also been invoked due to the digital circulation of the content.
In the complaint, Rashidi’s language and tone were alleged to reflect an “anti-national mindset,” with claims of links to groups working to destabilize social harmony in India. The complaint further warned that such individuals pose a threat to the secular and democratic fabric of the nation.
Police confirmed that the matter is under investigation and said that appropriate action will follow based on the evidence collected.
