NEW DELHI: Abdul Malik, the alleged mastermind behind the outbreak of violence in Haldwani's Banbhoolpura on February 8, has been arrested by the Uttarakhand Police from Delhi. Police Headquarters Spokesperson IG Nilesh Bharne said that a team from the Nanital Police is now taking the investigation forward and that the accused will soon be produced in court. 

At least five people were killed and more than a dozen injured when violence broke out on the aforementioned date in Haldwani after the local administration demolished a mosque and a madrasa that had allegedly been illegally constructed. 

Malik was the man who was reportedly responsible for these ‘illegal’ structures and has been on the run ever since.