Govt  wakes up, tries to douse communal fire in MP's Malwa-Nimar region

BHOPAL: After a spate in incidents of communal violence, prohibitory orders under CrPC section 144 were clamped on the Malwa-Nimar region on Wednesday.  Three incidents were reported in four days from the region during the Ayodhya Ram Temple fundraiser processions. Now, no procession can be taken out without permission in the region known to be, both, a stronghold of RSS and a hotbed of the banned SIMI. The first incident was reported on December 26 when a rally taken out by saffron outfits was pelted with stones by people of a particular community at Begum Bag in Ujjain district.

Visuals of the incident had gone viral. The investigators have arrested 15 people, of whom five have been booked under the National Security Act (NSA), Ujjain police said. A house from which stones were thrown at the procession was demolished by the administration under the anti-mafia drive in the state.

The second incident happened three days later on Tuesday at Chandana Khedi in Indore district, where a communal clash broke out after the rally allegedly came under attack in the village dominated by a particular community. A war of words snowballed, ending with some villagers pelting the procession with stones. This sparked clashes, leaving at least five persons injured. Bullets also were allegedly were fired.
“Five persons were hurt, but all of them are out of danger.

Four cases of rioting and attempt to murder have been registered; 25 people have been arrested. Prohibitory orders under Section 144 CrPc have been imposed in the village and adjoining villages under Gautampura police station. Gautampura police station in-charge RC Bhaskare has been suspended, while sub-divisional officer police Pankaj Dixit has been removed from his post,” Indore DIG Harinarayanchari Mishra told TNIE.

The third incident was reported from Dorana in Mandsaur district, where some members of the procession climbed atop houses and attempted to fix saffron flags. They allegedly damaged houses, and attempted to vandalise a place of worship. Police said that 58 people were booked and five arrested for the violence that ensued.