Ten Asian men cleared of violent disorder over Rotherham demonstrations confrontation

A group of ten men with their supporters outside Sheffield Crown Court, as they have been cleared of violent disorder following clashes in the wake of two rival demonstrations. Pic: PA

The men were arrested after a confrontation in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, in September last year following a protest by far-right groups and a counter-demonstration by anti-fascist campaigners, which was policed by 800 officers.

A jury at Sheffield Crown Court was shown CCTV footage of violent scenes as a group of white men outside a pub clashed with a group of mainly Asian men in the town centre.

Police in Rotherham on the day of the incident

The footage showed fighting in the street between the two groups before police arrived in numbers to part them.

Asif Zaman, 47, of Wellgate Mount; Mohammed Saleem, 43, of Mount Street; Arshad Khan, 44, of Wellgate Mount; Abrar Javid, 37, of St Johns Road; Imran Iqbal, 29, of Clough Road; Nasrum Rashid, 21, of Fraser Road; Moshin Mahmood, 18, of James Street; Sadaqat Ali, 39, of Milton Road; Shaban Ditta, 31, of Cambridge Crescent; and Akaash Nazir, 21, of Cow Rakes Lane, all in Rotherham, were all cleared violent disorder amid jubilant scenes on Wednesday.

All the men argued they had been acting in self-defence.

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