A heavy police deployment has been made in the area. (Representational)
A clash broke out between two communities outside a gurudwara here following which over 80 identified and hundreds of unidentified people were booked for rioting and damaging public property, the police said today.
Additional Superintendent of Police (rural) Subhash Chandra Shakya said tension erupted yesterday when a watchman objected putting up a cart to sell 'rakhis' by a 14-year-old girl outside the gurudwara in the Banda area of the district.
The watchman also allegedly hit the girl with a stick on her leg, the police said.
As the news spread, Hindus and Sikhs reached the spot and indulged in stone pelting, they said.
Superintendent of Police, Shahjahanpur, S Chinappa said, "Three FIRs have been registered against more than 80 people from both sides and hundreds of others under various sections of the IPC for rioting and damaging public property."
He said the FIRs were lodged on complaints by Sher Bahadur (father of the girl), Rajesh Jain (resident of Banda) and the police, respectively.
Mr Chinappa said heavy police deployment has been made in the area to maintain law and order.
A meeting of the two sides was called by District Magistrate Amrit Tripathi to help law enforcement agencies establish peace, he said.
Mr Tripathi said, "Culprits are being identified through the video footage of the incident, following which they will be arrested.
Those responsible for vitiating the atmosphere will not be spared"
"One police vehicle and two other vehicles were damaged in stone pelting," Sub-divisional Magistrate Satyapriye Singh had said yesterday.