Violence continued for the second day at Ambedkarnagar by the Kanwariyas after a motor-cycle hit a group of kanwariyas on the Ambedkar Nagar-Azamgarh highway.
Reports said that the kanwariyas continued their protest and damaged some vehicles on Friday morning. They also blocked the main highway demanding action against the culprits. District police chief of Ambedkarnagar, Pankaj, said that there was some minor incidents on Friday morning but the situation was under control.
On Thursday, the kanwariyas set two buses, a police vehicle and a motorcycle on fire. Police claimed that the incident took place when three youths on a bike hit a kanwariya on the highway, injuring him and damaging the kanwar (a bamboo-based contraption used to carry pots of Ganga water for worship during the month of Sawan). After the clash, kanwariyas blocked the traffic on Ambedkar Nagar- Azamgarh
highway.
Following the accident, the kanwariyas chased the three bike-borne youths and caught hold one of them, setting his motorcycle on fire. later, after the news about the clash spread, the members of another community gathered at the spot and pelted stones on the kanwariyas which further worsened the situation. However, the timely intervention of the police and the administration averted a major incident as they were successful in pacifying both the communities.
As the Kanwanriyas were more in number, they set fire to three roadways buses and the jeep of the station officer of the Akbarpur police station. The Kanwariyas also started assaulting passersby and blocked the highway for about four hours demanding the arrest of the youths.
Meanwhile in Bareilly, normalcy was restored after tension ran high in the old city area, on Wednesday night when a mob indulged in stone pelting and arson protesting against posting of objectionable content on a social networking site. Around 450 people have been detained by the police for indulging in strides of violence in ‘Meera ki Paith’ area of the city. Shops remained closed and roads wore deserted look as companies of Indo-Tibetan Border Police Force, Rapid Action Force and Police Armed Constabulary manned the clash-hit areas in this city for a consecutive second day.
“Red-alert has been sounded in sensitive areas of this city, and we are in hunt of anti-social elements, around 12 shops and people of ‘Meera ki Paith’ area are being monitored by Closed Circuit TV Cameras”, said, Senior Superintendent of Police J Ravindra Gaur. He also said clips from media groups are also being examined for keeping a check on anti-social elements. Meanwhile, two youths of Meera ki Paith locality allegedly posted some objectionable content on a social networking site hurting religious sentiments of people.