There was three Muslim men, as well as representatives of the Army Medical Corps, were allegedly harassed and threatened with jail time by the management of Taj Vivanta hotel here after videos of Lok Sabha MP Asaduddin Owaisi’s speeches were found on their phone.
According to a report in The Hindu, Imran Hussain Laskar, Sahab Uddin and Zahid Islam Barbhuiyan had checked into the four-star hotel after missing a flight to Delhi. While Laskar is a dental hygienist in the army, Uddin owns a college near Silchar and Barbhuiyan is a teacher, the report said.
According to Barbhuiyan, the trio checked in at 2pm, paid Rs 2,000 for an extra bed in their room and went out. He added that they returned at 4pm to find the hotel “full of security men” who were reportedly watching their movements. The trio said the hotel staff had also not complied with their request for an extra bed.
When questioned, the receptionist allegedly misbehaved with them, while the hotel’s chief executive officer threatened to send them to prison when they tried speaking to mediapersons who were there for a VIP event at the hotel.
“Laskar tried to record the harassment, but his mobile was snatched. They checked his mobile and found an old video of Asaduddin Owaisi and surmised he was a radical. They confiscated Laskar’s identity card, detained him and sent us to our room,” The Hindu quoted Barbhuiyan as saying.
They were reportedly allowed to leave around midnight.
“We have nothing to say as of now,” hotel spokesperson Indranee Phukan told the English daily.
Objecting to the alleged treatment meted out to the three men, lawmaker and AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi urged Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal to initiate an inquiry.
“Taj Group hotel in Guwahati accused of profiling… Laskar tried to record the harassment, but his mobile was snatched. They checked his mobile and found an old video of Asaduddin Owaisi and surmised he was a radical @TajHotels,” Owaisi tweeted.
