Police on Saturday lodged an unnamed First Information Report (FIR) against miscreants allegedly involved in vandalising property and assaulting common public in Ranchi during the course of a protest staged on Friday against mob attacks on members of a particular community.
The protest was triggered by misleading posts on social media that painted a communal picture of clashes between three youths and residents of a locality near the Birsa Munda Airport on Friday evening. The locals, police said, had got into a tussle with the three men, all in their early 20s, while they were clicking pictures in the area. “There was no communal angle to the clash. Some social media posts have mislead people into believing that the incident was triggered by communal differences between the trio and the locals,” said Ranchi Superintendent of Police Hari Lal Chouhan.
Soon after the rumours spread on social media, some members of a particular community staged protest near Ekra Mazjid on Mahatma Gandhi Road on Friday night. The protestors reportedly vandalized vehicles, assaulted commoners and stabbed one Vivek Srivastava with a knife. Srivastava was rushed to Medica Superspecialty Hospital and is said to be out of danger.
Meanwhile, police on Saturday said that the CCTV footage of the area will be scanned and individuals found guilty will be arrested. Ranchi police also issued a directive on Saturday asking people to refrain from posting or sharing any content on social media that may trigger or fuel communal disharmony. “The incident was given a communal angle on social media by some people with vested interest. We have issued directives to put a check on circulation of such posts.
Also, our cyber cell is trying to trace the people involved in spreading hatred online,” said Chouhan.
The three men involved in the tussle on Friday evening have been identified as Aamir Wasim, Alfaaf and Arib Ahmed.
The trio, police sources said, were clicking pictures of a few girls at Airport Ground near the airport. Meanwhile, around 20 to 30 locals from Hethu Basti confronted them and an initial banter turned into a brawl. The trio was allegedly thrashed by the residents of the slum and had to flee. They later lodged a First Information Report (FIR) with the Doranda Police Station in Ranchi.
The area around Ekra Mazjid, where members of a particular community vandalized property and created havoc as a mark of protest against the incident reported near airport, has been a communally sensitive area since years.
The high voltage drama on Friday evening also led to major traffic congestion in different parts of the State Capital.