Teens held for bribing kids to send negative Waqf Bill feedback from parents’ phones

Agra: Two teenagers, aged 16 and 17, were arrested in Agra district on Friday for allegedly bribing children with Rs 20 each to fetch their parents' cell phones, which were then misused to send negative feedback about the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, from three different phones to the Parliamentary joint committee, police said.The messages were sent on Sept 15, just before the deadline, to increase opposition to the bill, which proposes including non-Muslims and Muslim women in Waqf Boards and removes the Boards' power to declare properties as Waqf.Police said the teenagers, one a Class 12 student and the other a first-year college student, were charged under Sections 299 (outraging religious feelings) and 353 (circulating false information) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and Section 66(D) of the IT Act. The complaint was filed by a parent whose child's phone was used.DCP Sonam Kumar said, "Primary investigation revealed the two offered Rs 20 to the sons of two residents to get their family members' phones. The accused confessed, and we are investigating whether they were influenced or coerced to send the messages."