250-strong 'troll army' fanned Nagpur flames, claim police

NAGPUR: Authorities lifted curfew in two police station limits in Nagpur and relaxed restrictions for two hours in six areas Thursday. But Monday night's riots epicentre Mahal remained under heavy security. Police arrested 17 more suspects and detained four minors for stone-throwing, bringing the total in custody to 95.

Fahim Khan, a burqa seller accused of masterminding the violence, was charged with two cases of sedition. He was arrested Tuesday and remanded in police custody. He is expected to be transferred to the cyber cell for further investigation.

Police alleged that he spread inflammatory content through viral videos in the hours leading up to the riots. "Khan proactively shared his inflammatory video, which propagated hate against another community and police," said cyber cell DCP Lohit Matani.

Khan had led a protest to Ganeshpeth police station Monday, filing a complaint against Bajrang Dal and VHP members for burning an effigy of Aurangzeb and a religious chadar during the day. Shortly after leaving, he posted a video blaming police for shielding the demonstrators. The video quickly went viral, which authorities claim incited the violence in Mahal Gate, a neighbourhood just 2km from the RSS headquarters.

Police sources said Khan's video gained traction online, fuelling tensions and helping mobilise a stone-throwing mob. Cyber investigators alleged that a 250-member "troll army" played a key role in spreading inflammatory content.

"We have zeroed in on more than 50 users and sent out police teams to nab them by midnight," Matani said. More than 90 provocative posts were shared from 34 accounts in a short span and before authorities could take them down, they had gone viral.

Some of the posts were allegedly doctored to escalate tensions. "There was no holy inscription on a cloth burned near Gandhi Gate. The videos were morphed," said a cyber sleuth.

The cyber team also tracked social media activity from international users, including from Bangladesh, amplifying hate speech. One post garnered 50,000 likes and 20,000 comments, according to police. "The ferocity of the troll army was no less than the rioters on the ground," said an official.

Two people critically wounded in the clashes - a teenager and a 40-year-old man - are recovering in govt-run hospitals, officials said.

Govt hospital data showed most of the wounded people, aged 24-40, suffered head wounds from blunt trauma, deep cuts, and swelling, likely caused by stones and rods. Many also suffered serious eye wounds, raising concerns about long-term health effects.