Kolkata: Police have launched a probe after a tea stall owner in Beniapukur, Madan Shaw (54), lodged a complaint against a viral, fake WhatsApp voice message being circulated in his name.The audio, he claimed, falsely declared that he had complained to the police about the “high volume of azaan (call to prayer) at a local mosque.”Beniapukur Police Station has registered a case under Section 196(1)(a) of the BNS, which deals with promoting disharmony, enmity or feelings of hatred between different religious groups.Shaw, a resident of Rameshwar Shaw Road, who runs a popular local tea joint called “Paresh’s Tea Shop,” approached the cops on Sunday. Denying the allegations, Shaw expressed deep distress over the attempt to portray him as religiously intolerant. “I have lived here since birth. I know the Imam personally. I myself asked Imam Saheb about it, and he too mentioned that voice message. He also said that it was false propaganda, and that he was informing all the people he knew through messages that it was misleading. It hurts the faith of people belonging to a particular religion and may disturb communal harmony. I request that proper legal action be taken against the perpetrators,” he stated.Police officials stated that the misinformation appeared to be a calculated conspiracy that can be borne out of personal rivalry.
