Saharanpur violence was triggered in opposition of celebration of Maharana Prataps birth anniversary
Twenty-two people were arrested and 4 companies of the Provincial Armed Constabulary was called in at Saharanpur in Uttar Pradesh, where violence erupted yesterday - the third such instance in a month. Locals indicate it was a fallout of alleged police inaction in the previous clashes between the district's Dalits and upper castes.
Stone-throwing and vandalism were reported from at least three places in the district. Around 12 motorbikes were torched and a police post was set on fire. According to reports, at least two senior police officers suffered head injuries while trying to control the mob.
Subhash Dubey, a senior police officer of the area, said a maha panchayat had been called today by members of a particular community. "A campaign was being run on social media. We got to know about it and prevented it and so the people, who were coming for it, jammed the roads and burnt vehicles," he said.
The latest violence was triggered after Dalit groups opposed the celebration of the birth anniversary of Maharana Pratap, a Rajput ruler and icon for the Thakur community, contending that they were not allowed to celebrate and take out processions during Ambedkar Jayanti in April.
Last week on Friday there were even clashes between Dalits and upper caste Thakurs, which left one person dead and over 20 injured.
On May 5, Dalits had complained about the use of loudspeakers in a Thakur procession. According to reports, there were rumours that an Ambedkar statue in the village was also being vandalised.
On May 8, the state police chief visited the area and promised to restore law and order. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had also appealed to the people not to take law and order in their hands.
While the state government said it was doing its best to control the situation, the Congress alleged that the law and order has failed. "It is very unfortunate what has happened. The police has failed completely," said local Congress leader Imran Masood.