An uneasy calm prevailed in Gonda district, where police arrested 13 people in connection with communal clash that took place during Ganesh idol immersion on Wednesday.
Three police officials were also suspended for laxity in their duties.
Schools and colleges in the city have been closed while the markets and shops kept their shutter down on Thursday. District Magistrate Ajay Kumar Upadhaya and Superintendent of Police Anil Kumar Singh were monitoring the situation and adequate security personnel have been deployed to control the situation.
The authorities have suspended station officer of Kodiya Police Station, Alok Dubey and Sub-Inspector Digvijay Shahi along with constable Ramesh Chandra Rai for laxity in their duties leading to the violence. In the violence, five policemen, including city magistrate Arun kumar Shukla received injuries.
The clash was triggered when someone threw stones on a procession going for immersion of Ganesh idol through Utraula road after passing through Chowk area in Gonda. Agitated over the incident, the members of the procession indulged in violence and set afire 10 shops, six motorcycles and a private bus, which subsequently led to communal clash.
later, the violence spread out to Chowk area where clashes took place between two communities. Section 144 CrPC has been clamped in the district while security forces are patrolling the sensitive area. Upadhaya claimed the situation was fast turning normal and no incident of violence was reported from anywhere since Wednesday night.
Meanwhile, in a separate incident, a retired Assistant Road Transport officer (ARTO) allegedly committed suicide after shooting his wife under New Agra Police Station area on Thursday. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Pritinder Singh said retired ARTO Sitaram Sharma (65) first shot his wife Rama Devi (60) with his licenced rifle and then committed suicide by shooting himself from the same firearm. The SSP said preliminary investigation revealed that family dispute was the reason behind the extreme step. Police was investigating the case and bodies were sent for post-mortem examination.