Listen to this article:

In a conversation with Alt News on March 23, the complainant in the Varanasi Iftar-on-boat case offered a series of shifting and evasive responses, mirroring the inconsistencies that now surround the case in which 14 Muslim men were arrested in Varanasi for breaking fast on a boat with Biriyani among other food items.

The controversy began after videos of the men breaking their Ramzan fast on a boat had gone viral. A complaint filed on March 16 by Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM)’s Varanasi president Rajat Jaiswal accused them of hurting religious sentiments by consuming non-vegetarian food on the river and disposing of waste into it. The police subsequently arrested 14 men under multiple charges, including hurting religious sentiments, public nuisance and polluting water. Days later, more serious charges — including extortion — were added, significantly raising the legal stakes.

When Alt News contacted Jaiswal, the exchange itself became revealing.

At the very outset, Jaiswal asked this correspondent if she was a Hindu. What followed was a series of pointed questions and evasive responses:

Jaiswal claimed, “We have such deep faith in our Mother Ganga that even eating non-veg there is a grave sin.” He insisted that full evidence had been submitted to the administration and that “the FIR was filed on that basis.”

BJYM Varanasi president Rajat Jaiswal with BJP MP Anurag Thakur. Photo: Facebook

Pressed on how he knew this, he replied, “Everything is known!”

On being asked again how he knew about the waste disposal, Jaiswal first said “I saw it myself”. When asked how he could see it if he was not present on the boat, he deflected saying that people had shared witness accounts.

When asked why people had shared witness accounts with him, Jaiswal said those were shared not with him, but with the administration. He maintained: “Talk to the administration, they’ll explain better.”

Then how did he know about the waste disposal part? Alt News asked him again. Did he see it himself or in a video? Jaiswal refused to clarify, saying, “Come meet me, I’ll show you in person.”

Asked for his location, he responded, “I live in Varanasi,” after which the call was concluded.

Notably, his version appeared to shift. In his video statement,........

© The Wire