On Tuesday night, a man, Vinay Dubey, was detained by Navi Mumbai Police in Airoli for threatening a huge protest by migrant labourers in Kurla, Mumbai, on April 18.
He was detained by police over messages on his social media accounts which may have contributed to the gathering of a large number of migrant workers in suburban Bandra on Tuesday afternoon.
The police suspect his social media messages contributed to the protest by more than 1,000 migrant workers, most of them from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, near suburban Bandra railway station. Vinay Dubey, was detained by the Navi Mumbai police on Tuesday in Airoli and was later handed over to the Mumbai police.
Dubey has been formally arrested by Mumbai police, under IPC sections 117, 153 A, 188, 269, 270, 505 (2) and Section 3 of The Epidemic Diseases Act. He will be produced before a local court later today.
After mob gathered at Bandra on Tuesday, Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh said that strict action will be taken against those responsible for spreading rumours. "The orders have been given against those who spread the rumour that trains will start. Strict action will be taken against those who spread rumours," Deshmukh had tweeted.
On Tuesday, more than 1,000 migrant workers gathered outside the station in Bandra and demanded transportation arrangements to go back to their hometowns, this happened hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the extension nationwide lockdown till May 3.
