Surat police have registered an FIR after WhatsApp messages allegedly threatened arson and violence unless labour union leader Ajay Dubey was released, prompting an investigation into the source and circulation of the messages.
The FIR was registered at Saroli police station after constable Jayesh Lallubhai, 38, filed a complaint based on information about the threats. Police said Mahesh Singh allegedly sent the messages on Tuesday demanding Dubey’s immediate release. The messages allegedly warned that property could be set on fire if the demand was not met.
One message, as described in the police complaint, referred to a matchbox and Rs 150 worth of petrol. The complainant alleged that the messages were intended to create fear and intimidate people. The FIR also records concerns that the threats could endanger property and public safety.
Police referred to a recent incident in which a man allegedly set goods on fire at Shyam Sangini Complex while assessing the context of the messages. Investigators are examining digital evidence and other material to establish the accused’s role and determine the circumstances in which the threats were circulated.
The messages surfaced amid agitation connected to demands for Sundays off for workers. Dubey had been arrested in an extortion case registered at Khatodara police station, while several labour activists were detained on Thursday, according to the report. The police investigation is examining whether the messages were linked to the wider agitation and the demand for Dubey’s release.
The case places the focus on how threats circulated through private messaging platforms can quickly become a public-order concern when they refer to arson, violence and identifiable property. The FIR records the allegations and the police response; the accused’s role remains subject to investigation.
A separate assault complaint was also registered by Amroli police during the agitation over Sunday work. According to the complaint, 21-year-old labourer Majeet Gautam was travelling to his unit on Wednesday night after buying vegetables when Nilesh Kashyap allegedly stopped him and objected to his working on Sundays.
Kashyap and another person allegedly abused and assaulted Gautam, who later approached Amroli police and filed a complaint. The two cases are separate police matters, but both emerged against the backdrop of tensions over working arrangements and labour mobilisation in Surat.
Police are continuing to examine the digital material linked to the alleged threats and the complaints registered in connection with the labour-related dispute.
