At least two persons, including one police official, sustained injuries and 14 vehicles were gutted in a clash between two groups during the procession of Prophet Mohammad birthday near Barwadih area in Giridih – Dhanbad road here on Sunday at around 11 am. Tension gripped Barwadih area and Giridih town which come under the Sadar police station.
The police, camping in the Barwadih and town area to ward off any untoward incident, have arrested few persons. The entire town has been turned into a cantonment to prevent the tension to escalate further. Section 144 has been imposed in the area following the large-scale violence. While confirming the incident, Giridih Superintendent of Police Karanti Kumar Garidesi said that the trouble began around 11 am on Sunday when a procession of Hazrat Mohammad Paigambar’s birthday was taken out.
The police said that on Sunday, around 40,000 people of the Muslim community stormed near the Barwadih area and a heated argument broke-out between the two group over some issue. Soon, the revelers divided into two groups and thrashed each other. The mob also damaged windscreens of several vehicles and set several bikes on fire. The incensed mobs and local villagers started throwing bricksbats, leading the police to fire in the air to disperse the protesting mob before resorting to lathi charge.This led to a stampede in which two people including one policeman sustained injuries.
As the violence began, areas right from Barwadih to the town area turned into a battleground suspending the traffic on Giridih-Dhanbad road. As the news of the attack on the other community reached the Giridih town, villagers and local people damaged several vehicles and also set 14 vehicles including Sankat Mochan and Baba Smarat buses, nine motorcycles, two pickup vans ,and one Maruti car on fire.
locals alleged that the miscreants did not spare even women and children.They also targeted those watching the procession from their rooftops. Pedestrians crossing the road were beaten-up, a resident said. Buses on the Giridih-Dhanbad highway were damaged near Barwadih that created panic among vehicle owners, who have stopped plying vehicles on the highway.
Though the district officials as well as police personnel remained tight-lipped over the incident. Information about this incident was passed on to the police chief of Giridih, who swung into action. The SP himself reached the spot and brought the situation under control. He also has been keeping an eye on the situation.