On Tuesday, the Delhi Police denied a 'report' claiming a mosque had been damaged in Delhi's 'Ashok Vihar'.
DCP North West said: "Some false information/news item has been circulating regarding damage to a mosque in Ashok Vihar area. It is to clarify that no such incident has taken place in the area of Ashok Vihar."
"Please do not spread false information," he added.
Earlier on Tuesday, The Wire reported that a mosque was set on fire late on Tuesday afternoon. The report earlier mentioned 'Ashok Vihar' which was later changed to 'Ashok Nagar'.
According to the report, a mob chanting “Jai Shri Ram” and “Hinduon ka Hindustan” walked around the burning mosque, and a Hanuman flag was placed on the minaret of the masjid.
A video of the reported incident has gone viral on social media. In the video, some individuals are seen climbing the minaret, one with a saffron flag while the other with an Indian tricolour.
The video has been shared by journalist Rana Ayyub and Congress leader Sanjay Nirupam among others.
Interestingly, Sanjay Nirupam later gave a denial and wrote: "I am sorry if this video is not related to Delhi violence. I just saw it on Twitter. Somebody posted it as part of Delhi riots. It may be a mischief by someone. But the fact is a mosque is being desecrated and it’s against the ethos of Hindu Dharma. Let’s condemn it unequivocally.”
Naomi Barton, Audience Editor at The Wire, tweeted she personally saw the mosque been burnt.
She said, "Making this very clear : I personally saw the flag on top of the miniaret of the mosque at Ashok NAGAR, not VIHAR. The mosque had been burned, and a footwear shop underneath it was looted in front of my eyes."
The riots have claimed 13 lives and left over 180 injured, including the police personnel, in the past two days.
Curfew was imposed in four mob violence-hit areas of Maujpur, Chand Bagh, Karawal Nagar and Jafarabad in northeast Delhi, on Tuesday.
In many places, the violent pro and anti-CAA activists outnumbered the police and indulged in arson.
Delhi Police has appealed to all the citizens of the national capital to co-operate with Delhi Police in maintaining peace and harmony across the city in view of the ongoing violence erupting across the Northeast parts of Delhi.
Note: The article has been updated to add the reporter's response and Sanjay Nirupam's clarification.
(With input from Agencies)
