New Delhi: Five men arrested in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, allegedly for preparing chicken aboard a small river boat and drinking beer on it, were released on bail on sureties of Rs 20,000 each on Tuesday, June 23. As per documents related to their arrest, release and news reports, Deepak Kumar, Ajay Sahani, Arun Kumar Sahani, Rahul Sahani and Anurag Nishad spent Monday night in police custody.But the police challan submitted in the court of the executive magistrate/assistant commissioner of police on Tuesday does not refer to chicken or beer. It says police apprehended them for arguing with tourists who refused to board their boat to take a river tour on Man Mandir Ghat.The challan, submitted in court by sub-inspector Anuj Mani Tiwari on June 23, says police arrested them under preventive provisions (Section 170 of the Bharatiya Nagrik Surkasha Sanhita or BNSS and Sections 126/135 of the same law) because they did not stop “shouting” at tourists despite attempts to calm them. It says they were creating a situation that could lead to a breach of peace.On the other hand, as per the FIR, (No 0143/2026 filed at Dashashwamedh police outpost, on June 23, at 2.18 am) a video of the five men, who are aged between 25 to 32 years, was the basis for their arrest. This video, allegedly of the five men relaxing on an anchored boat while a small pot of chicken is being cooked, appears to have been recorded on a winter night, making it at least five months old.Still, the FIR filed on June 23 alleges that consuming meat and alcohol on the Ganga and publicising it through a video hurt religious sentiments and insulted religious beliefs. The FIR also repeatedly refers to River Ganga as “Patit Pavani Ma Ganga – Mother Ganga, which washes away sins.”Note that the FIR provides a link to the allegedly offensive video, but not to the original video. Instead, the link is to the social media handle of a news site, which shares the allegedly offensive video.Further, the records do not explain the relationship between the allegations in the FIR and the separate reference to preventative action in the challan, which focuses on a dispute with tourists rather than the video.FIR No. 0143/2026 against the five Varanasi men alleges they ate meat and consumed alcohol on the sacred Ganga, and publicised it through a video, which hurt religious sentiments and insulted Hindu religious beliefs.At present, the police has said the investigation is underway. “An FIR/case was immediately registered in the matter, all the accused were arrested, and the boat was seized. Further legal proceedings are being carried out,” Kashi DCP wrote on X on Wednesday afternoon.प्रकरण में तत्काल अभियोग पंजीकृत करते हुए सभी आरोपियों को गिरफ्तार किया गया तथा नाव सीज करते हुए अग्रिम विधिक कार्यवाही की जा रही है ।— DCP Kashi (@VnsDcp) June 24, 2026Dashashwamedh assistant commissioner of police (ACP) Atul Anjaan Tripathi has “appealed” to people not to indulge in acts that hurt public sentiments and warned of legal action.Reports also said that the boat belonged to a Varanasi-based Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Satyanarayan Sahni, but this could not be confirmed independently by The Wire. Varanasi Police wrote on X, in response to a similar claim made from a Samajwadi Party handle, that a probe is underway: “In the case, charges were immediately registered, all the accused were arrested, the boat was seized, and further legal proceedings are underway.”As per media reports, Tripathi acknowledged that the video appears to be old and that the BJP-linked leader was not on the boat when the arrests took place and that ownership was still a matter of investigation.Documents pertaining to their release say the accused were presented before the court after their arrest, notices were read out to them, they did not admit the allegations and the magistrate directed them to furnish a personal bond of Rs 20,000 and two sureties of Rs 20,000 each. The case will continue being heard in the court while the accused are on bail.Parallels with previous caseIn March, 14 Muslim men were arrested and jailed (FIR No. 0065/2026) in Varanasi and imprisoned until May. They could secure release from the High Court of Allahabad. Their release also followed their apology to the “Hindu community” for offending religious feelings.The two cases are very similar – the Muslim youngsters had also cooked meat on a boat (no alcohol was involved) to mark one of the holy days in the month of Ramzan and allegedly shared a video of it.That video led police to their doorstep, as in this case, levelling accusations of hurt sentiment. But in that case, the accused were denied bail by local courts, unlike in the present case.Advocate Vikas Singh represents both sets of arrestees – the Hindus and the Muslims – in Varanasi courts. He explains that the difference in treatment of both groups of youngsters has to do with the sections of law that have been applied.“The Muslim boys were charged with having snatched a boatman’s boat, which relates to sections of law that carry a penalty of more than ten years’ imprisonment. Lower courts cannot grant bail in such cases, and so they had to approach the [Allahabad] high court. In the present case, the young men are charged with sections that involve punishment of up to seven years, in which a lower court can grant bail,” says Singh.Singh said that the young men had not done anything violating the law and that cooking meat or any other food on a boat was not barred. In fact, it was part of ordinary life near the riverside. He also pointed out that celebrations on a grand scale, including weddings, are being organised on riverboats in Varanasi, which do not attract any police or administration action. “Tents are put up, celebrations go on for days,” he said, “but nothing is done to those people.”Besides the sections invoked, in the latest case, the police took action based on a complaint by Dashashwamedh police outpost in-charge, Anuj Mani Tripathi. On the other hand, a local BJP leader, Rajat Jaiswal, had filed the case against the Muslim men. Singh said he would prefer not to comment on the political allegations related to the case.Chicken, fish also face crackdownThe incident comes on the heels of a Varanasi Municipal Corporation decision two weeks ago to send all 350 to 400 meat, fish and poultry shops beyond city limits, NDTV reports. The proposal was approved at a meeting of the municipal corporation’s governing body on Saturday (June 6), and was led by Varanasi Mayor Ashok Kumar Tiwari, a BJP leader.In 2019, the state’s BJP government had banned sale and consumption of meat and alcohol within a 250-metre radius of temples and heritage sites in Varanasi.