Senior cops acknowledged that there had been some sort of bungling on the part of junior level police officers at landhaura on June 1–the day violence broke out there, leaving many injured.
They said that a shop could have been vacated without the least glitch. “Things should have been handled more effectively and sensibly in view of the communal vulnerability of the place,” one of them said.
One of them said that vacating a shop in accordance with the law is not a difficult task. “There can hardly be any problem if all concerned agree to conform to the laws. But extra caution should be taken when it comes to forcible vacation. The police personnel should have considered the communally sensitive character of the place while the shop was being vacated. I am sure, things could have been managed without having things flared up the way they did. There were indeed shortcomings in handling the situation,” he said.
Tension still brewing in the area, police have so far arrested 27 persons on the charge of their involvement in the violence that erupted on June 1.
State DGP MA Ganapathy said that police are vigilant and alert. Three cases have been lodged in the police stations. A case has been registered in regards to forcible vacation of the shop. Second FIR has been lodged in regards to some persons having barged into the residence of former MlA Kunwar Pranav Singh ‘Champion’ and the third FIR has been lodged against persons involved in stone- pelting on police post and torching vehicles at the incident site, he said.
Additional police forces have been deployed at sensitive places across Haridwar district. “We are a bit concerned as political parties are out to milk things there with elections drawing near. We apprehend that such incidents might occur at other places too,” the state’s top cop said. He further said strong action would be taken against those found communalising the situation there.
He said that the Mahapanchayat called by one community could not have taken place in the tension–stricken area thanks to the police remaining alert and agile. He thanked UP police too on the matter, saying that the Mahapanchayat could not have taken place in Muzaffarnagar either because of the pro-active role UP police played.