Security forces stand guard at violence-hit Muzaffarnagar villages
Thousands of policemen are standing guard at two villages of Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh after four killings have revived fears of riots that led to nearly 60 deaths last month.
Senior police officers have gathered for a long vigil at the villages Hussainpur and Mohmadpur, where tension is simmering after the killing of three young men and a woman in separate incidents on Wednesday.
"It is unfortunate that the steps we were taking to build communal harmony in Muzaffarnagar have been interrupted," said the state's top police officer Devraj Nagar, adding that the incidents are not being linked to communal violence for now.
Mr Nagar had admitted that the new violence can "definitely be attributed to lapses on part of the police."
Wednesday's killings took place even though several policemen, including the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC), had been patrolling these parts for weeks. The villages are part of the Burhana area, which was one of the flashpoints of last month's communal clashes.
Local BJP leaders have accused the PAC of a role in the fresh violence.
The police complaint, or FIR, alleges that Afroz, Ajmal and Mehrbaan, three men from Hussainpur, all in their early twenties, were killed while working in the fields by Jat men from neighbouring Mohmadpur, after a fight.
The policemen stationed in the area said they had found the bodies on their evening round of the village. Despite each man doing a 12-hour shift, there were just not enough cops to cover the area, they complained.
But the Hussainpur village chief alleged that the police were unresponsive. "We called the station officer 21 times. He did not pick up," he alleged.
Eight people have been arrested. Around 500 paramilitary troops have been sent to Muzaffarnagar as a precaution.
Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, who was accused of a belated reaction to September's violence, said that the riots were being instigated by "mischievous elements" and accused the BJP of fanning tension with inflammatory speeches. The BJP accuses Mr Yadav and government officials of enacting policies that are lopsided in favour of Muslims.