Prayagraj authorities seal madrasa where controversial book on RSS was found

Prayagraj, Sep 4 (PTI) The Prayagraj Development Authority (PDA) on Wednesday sealed a madrasa in the city days after counterfeit currency was found to be printed there and a book comparing the RSS with a terrorist organisation was recovered from its premises.
     An official from the Prayagraj Development Authority said the Jamia Habibia Masjide Azam Madarsa in Atarsuiya was sealed on Wednesday as it was unauthorised.
     During a raid conducted on August 28, police recovered a book written in Urdu titled "RSS: Desh Ka Sabse Bada Aatankwadi Sangathan" ("RSS: The Largest Terrorist Organization in the Country") by former Maharashtra IG SM Mushrif.
     According to a senior official from Prayagraj Police, besides counterfeit notes, the book was also found during the raid, and upon translating it from Urdu to Hindi, it was confirmed to be authored by SM Mushrif under the title "RSS: Desh Ka Sabse Bada Aatankwadi Sangathan."
     The police believe that the madarsa's Maulvi, Mohammad Tafseerul Arifeen, was using the book "to instill hatred in the minds of children" against the RSS.
     In connection with this matter, teams from the Local Intelligence Unit (LIU) and the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) questioned the madarsa's staff on Tuesday.
     An official from the Local Intelligence Unit said that on Tuesday, teams from the ATS and LIU visited the Jamia Habibia Masjide Azam Madarsa to interrogate the staff and students. However, no significant information emerged from this questioning.
     The official added that the police will soon file an application in court to remand the suspects arrested in the counterfeit note case for further questioning.
     The staff and students of the madarsa denied any knowledge of counterfeit notes being printed.
     On August 28, the Prayagraj police busted a counterfeit currency racket, arresting four suspects, and recovered a total of 1,300 counterfeit notes of Rs 100 denomination, 234 printed (but uncut) pages of currency, a laptop, a colour printer, two bundles of bound paper, and one bundle of loose paper.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)