At least 21 people were arrested after a communal tension erupted in Bermo about 20 kms from the district headquarter of Bokaro on Wednesday morning. The tension started after some derogatory pictures of a goddess were put on a social media website, said locals.
The posts were put on social networking site Facebook by a youth sparked tension. Peeved over the post furious people caught the youth at Kargali Bazar and he was beaten black and blue by the mob. later police rushed at the market and resorted to lathi charge to release the youth from mob. Police brought the youth at Bermo police station. later, the irate mob put several shops of the market on fire, said an eyewitness.
“Annoyed over the post which hurt their religious feeling a mob of more than 1,500 people rushed and surrounded the police station and ransacked. Furious people started pelting stone on the police station and torched the vehicles parked inside the police station. Trucks standing on road side were also torched by the mob,” said another eyewitness.
Police fired in the air and again resorted to lathi charge to control the mob. Several people including DSP and cops were injured during the incident. Security has been intensified, and extra companies of forces were deployed and situation is now under control, said SDO Kundan Kumar.