News Analysis India

Tag: Stone pelting

  • Two home guards killed, 15 others injured as mobs pelt stones at VHP procession in Haryana’s Nuh

    By PTI

    GURUGRAM/CHANDIGARH: Two home guards were killed and at least 15 others, including several policemen, were injured Monday as a mob in Haryana’s Nuh district tried to stop a Vishva Hindu Parishad procession, pelting stones and setting cars on fire, officials said.

    #WATCH | Aftermath of clash that broke out between two groups in Haryana’s Nuh today. pic.twitter.com/yyVp10Hwzr
    — ANI (@ANI) July 31, 2023
    The Union Home Ministry said it is dispatching 15 additional companies of central forces to Haryana, as violence also erupted in Sohna in the neighbouring Gurugram district, adjacent to Delhi.

    As news of the violence in Muslim-dominated Nuh spread, mobs in Sohna set ablaze four vehicles and a shop, apparently belonging to people from that community.

    Protesters there blocked a road for hours. About 2,500 men, women and children who had taken shelter at a Shiv temple in Nuh were evacuated by police, Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said.

    Prohibitory orders banning the assembly of people were clamped in Nuh and Gurugram districts. Mobile internet services were suspended in Nuh and Faridabad up to Wednesday.

    Educational institutes were ordered closed Tuesday in Faridabad and Palwal districts as a precautionary measure.

    Gurugram Police Commissioner Kala Ramachandran said two home guards, attached with the district, were killed in the violence in adjoining Nuh.

    About 10 police personnel were injured in Nuh violence, the official said.

    Another police officer confirmed that one of the home guards, identified as Neeraj, died due to a gunshot wound. Eight of the injured police personnel were taken to Gurugram’s Medanta Hospital, he said.

    Among the injured Hodal Deputy Superintendent of Police Sajjan Singh was shot in the head and an inspector in the stomach.

    Police said the vehicles set ablaze were part of the procession or belonged to them.

    A video clip showed at least four cars on fire. Another purported video showed two damaged police cars. The clip contained the sound of gunfire. Police lobbed teargas shells in an attempt to disperse the mobs.

    Suspending mobile internet services in Nuh, the Haryana government said there was “intense communal tension” in the area.

    According to police, VHP’s ‘Brij Mandal Jalabhishek Yatra’ was stopped by a group of young men near Nuh’s Khedla Mod and stones were pelted at the procession.

    Cars were then set ablaze. People in the procession also hurled stones back at the youths who had stopped them, reports said.

    Later, many took refuge in a temple as police tried to evacuate them to safety. The yatra was flagged off from Gurugram’s Civil Lines by BJP district president Gargi Kakkar.

    A police contingent was deployed with the procession.

    According to some claims, the trigger for the clash was an objectionable video posted on social media by a Bajrang Dal activist in Ballabhgarh.

    There were also reports that Monu Manesar, a cow vigilante booked earlier for the murder of two Muslim men whose charred bodies were found in the Bhiwani district in February, was supposed to join the procession.

    The vigilante, however, saidI that he did not participate on the advice of the VHP, which feared that his presence would create tension. There were also threats on Twitter daring him to come to Nuh.

    ALSO READ | Internet services suspended till Aug 2 in Haryana’s Nuh after clashes break out between two groups

    State home minister Anil Vij said in the evening that three companies of central forces have already reached.

    According to the Union Home Ministry, the Centre is making available 15 additional companies were being made available to the state.

    Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar appealed for calm in Nuh, invoking the slogan “Haryana Ek Haryanvi Ek (Haryanvis are one)”.

    Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala called it a Black Day for Haryana, blaming the Khattar government for the failure of law and order.

    Former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda asked people to maintain peace and brotherhood. Nuh MLA Aftab Ahmed and former legislator MLA Zakir Hussain also issued similar appeals.

    “Our first priority is to bring the situation under control. We are appealing to all to maintain peace,” Vij said.

    He told reporters it will be determined later who was responsible for the violence.

    GURUGRAM/CHANDIGARH: Two home guards were killed and at least 15 others, including several policemen, were injured Monday as a mob in Haryana’s Nuh district tried to stop a Vishva Hindu Parishad procession, pelting stones and setting cars on fire, officials said.

    #WATCH | Aftermath of clash that broke out between two groups in Haryana’s Nuh today. pic.twitter.com/yyVp10Hwzr
    — ANI (@ANI) July 31, 2023
    The Union Home Ministry said it is dispatching 15 additional companies of central forces to Haryana, as violence also erupted in Sohna in the neighbouring Gurugram district, adjacent to Delhi.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    As news of the violence in Muslim-dominated Nuh spread, mobs in Sohna set ablaze four vehicles and a shop, apparently belonging to people from that community.

    Protesters there blocked a road for hours. About 2,500 men, women and children who had taken shelter at a Shiv temple in Nuh were evacuated by police, Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said.

    Prohibitory orders banning the assembly of people were clamped in Nuh and Gurugram districts. Mobile internet services were suspended in Nuh and Faridabad up to Wednesday.

    Educational institutes were ordered closed Tuesday in Faridabad and Palwal districts as a precautionary measure.

    Gurugram Police Commissioner Kala Ramachandran said two home guards, attached with the district, were killed in the violence in adjoining Nuh.

    About 10 police personnel were injured in Nuh violence, the official said.

    Another police officer confirmed that one of the home guards, identified as Neeraj, died due to a gunshot wound. Eight of the injured police personnel were taken to Gurugram’s Medanta Hospital, he said.

    Among the injured Hodal Deputy Superintendent of Police Sajjan Singh was shot in the head and an inspector in the stomach.

    Police said the vehicles set ablaze were part of the procession or belonged to them.

    A video clip showed at least four cars on fire. Another purported video showed two damaged police cars. The clip contained the sound of gunfire. Police lobbed teargas shells in an attempt to disperse the mobs.

    Suspending mobile internet services in Nuh, the Haryana government said there was “intense communal tension” in the area.

    According to police, VHP’s ‘Brij Mandal Jalabhishek Yatra’ was stopped by a group of young men near Nuh’s Khedla Mod and stones were pelted at the procession.

    Cars were then set ablaze. People in the procession also hurled stones back at the youths who had stopped them, reports said.

    Later, many took refuge in a temple as police tried to evacuate them to safety. The yatra was flagged off from Gurugram’s Civil Lines by BJP district president Gargi Kakkar.

    A police contingent was deployed with the procession.

    According to some claims, the trigger for the clash was an objectionable video posted on social media by a Bajrang Dal activist in Ballabhgarh.

    There were also reports that Monu Manesar, a cow vigilante booked earlier for the murder of two Muslim men whose charred bodies were found in the Bhiwani district in February, was supposed to join the procession.

    The vigilante, however, saidI that he did not participate on the advice of the VHP, which feared that his presence would create tension. There were also threats on Twitter daring him to come to Nuh.

    ALSO READ | Internet services suspended till Aug 2 in Haryana’s Nuh after clashes break out between two groups

    State home minister Anil Vij said in the evening that three companies of central forces have already reached.

    According to the Union Home Ministry, the Centre is making available 15 additional companies were being made available to the state.

    Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar appealed for calm in Nuh, invoking the slogan “Haryana Ek Haryanvi Ek (Haryanvis are one)”.

    Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala called it a Black Day for Haryana, blaming the Khattar government for the failure of law and order.

    Former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda asked people to maintain peace and brotherhood. Nuh MLA Aftab Ahmed and former legislator MLA Zakir Hussain also issued similar appeals.

    “Our first priority is to bring the situation under control. We are appealing to all to maintain peace,” Vij said.

    He told reporters it will be determined later who was responsible for the violence.

  • Indian construction workers pelted with stones on Indo-Nepal border in Uttarakhand

    Express News Service

    DEHRADUN: Indian labourers working along the Indo-Nepal border in Dharchula were allegedly pelted with stones by Nepalese nationals leaving at least one person injured and damaging several machineries.  

    The attack is the 11th such incident of stone pelting by Nepalese nationals over the last two months from across the border against Indian workers engaged in the construction of a safety wall along the Kali river.

    The attack comes a day after a joint inspection and talks between officials from both countries.

    Enraged by the incident, India has threatened to stop the movement of vehicles from the Nepal side of the border.

    In order to protect Dharchula town and surrounding villages, the Indian side is working to build embankments on the banks of the kali river. The construction of the embankment is being hampered by stone pelting from Nepal. On Friday evening, stones were once again hurled from Nepal in Ghatkhola.

    Nepalis threw stones at labourers constructing embankments at Ghatkhola in Dharchula, breaking window panes of two dumpers, two tipper trucks and JCBs. Dumper driver Danveer Sawant was also injured in the stone pelting. The construction of the embankment has been affected by the incident.  There is tremendous anger among the Indian people due to these repeated incidents.

    Pithoragarh District Magistrate Reena Joshi told The New Indian Express, “A joint survey has been conducted by both sides as a precautionary measure on the incident.  A meeting of high-level officials will also be called in the near future.”

    Joshi added, “the report sought by the Ministry of External Affairs regarding this incident has also been conveyed to them about the actual situation.”

    Earlier, another labourer was also injured in a similar stone-pelting incident. Indian traders had closed the ‘Jhula’ bridge in protest against this incident. In view of the tension, officials of the two countries had said to resolve the problem by meeting in mutual coordination.

    Nepal’s CDO also came to India and took stock of the situation. A day earlier on Thursday, engineers from Nepal also conducted an on-site inspection along with the local administration. Despite this, there is resentment among Indians due to stone pelting from Nepal.

    BJP district vice-president Mahendra Budiyal said, “The Nepal administration is repeatedly failing to stop stone-pelting incidents. This is affecting the construction work of the embankment being built to protect Dharchula. If Nepal does not take punitive action along with banning the activities of anarchists,the International Jhula Bridge will be closed.”

    DEHRADUN: Indian labourers working along the Indo-Nepal border in Dharchula were allegedly pelted with stones by Nepalese nationals leaving at least one person injured and damaging several machineries.  

    The attack is the 11th such incident of stone pelting by Nepalese nationals over the last two months from across the border against Indian workers engaged in the construction of a safety wall along the Kali river.

    The attack comes a day after a joint inspection and talks between officials from both countries.

    Enraged by the incident, India has threatened to stop the movement of vehicles from the Nepal side of the border.

    In order to protect Dharchula town and surrounding villages, the Indian side is working to build embankments on the banks of the kali river. The construction of the embankment is being hampered by stone pelting from Nepal. On Friday evening, stones were once again hurled from Nepal in Ghatkhola.

    Nepalis threw stones at labourers constructing embankments at Ghatkhola in Dharchula, breaking window panes of two dumpers, two tipper trucks and JCBs. Dumper driver Danveer Sawant was also injured in the stone pelting. The construction of the embankment has been affected by the incident.  There is tremendous anger among the Indian people due to these repeated incidents.

    Pithoragarh District Magistrate Reena Joshi told The New Indian Express, “A joint survey has been conducted by both sides as a precautionary measure on the incident.  A meeting of high-level officials will also be called in the near future.”

    Joshi added, “the report sought by the Ministry of External Affairs regarding this incident has also been conveyed to them about the actual situation.”

    Earlier, another labourer was also injured in a similar stone-pelting incident. Indian traders had closed the ‘Jhula’ bridge in protest against this incident. In view of the tension, officials of the two countries had said to resolve the problem by meeting in mutual coordination.

    Nepal’s CDO also came to India and took stock of the situation. A day earlier on Thursday, engineers from Nepal also conducted an on-site inspection along with the local administration. Despite this, there is resentment among Indians due to stone pelting from Nepal.

    BJP district vice-president Mahendra Budiyal said, “The Nepal administration is repeatedly failing to stop stone-pelting incidents. This is affecting the construction work of the embankment being built to protect Dharchula. If Nepal does not take punitive action along with banning the activities of anarchists,
    the International Jhula Bridge will be closed.”

  • Uttarakhand: Nepalese pelt stones at Indian workers objecting to construction work over Kali river

    By Online Desk

    A tense situation prevailed on the Indo-Nepal border in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand on Sunday evening following stone pelting against Indian labourers from the Nepal side.

    The stone pelting comes against the backdrop of Nepalese organisations objecting to construction of an embankment over the Kali river by India. Sunday’s stone pelting took place at the Dharchula area. A few workers were reportedly injured in the incident.

    Stone pelting incidents have been reported earlier as well.

    India has maintained that the embankment is being constructed on its own side and it should not bother the Himalayan nation.

    According to reports, the Kali river, also called Sharda river and Mahakali river, originates at Kalapani in the Himalayas in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand. It flows along Nepal’s western border with India.

    The construction of more than 1,700 metres long embankment on the Indian side commenced in March this year.

    A tense situation prevailed on the Indo-Nepal border in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand on Sunday evening following stone pelting against Indian labourers from the Nepal side.

    The stone pelting comes against the backdrop of Nepalese organisations objecting to construction of an embankment over the Kali river by India. Sunday’s stone pelting took place at the Dharchula area. A few workers were reportedly injured in the incident.

    Stone pelting incidents have been reported earlier as well.

    India has maintained that the embankment is being constructed on its own side and it should not bother the Himalayan nation.

    According to reports, the Kali river, also called Sharda river and Mahakali river, originates at Kalapani in the Himalayas in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand. It flows along Nepal’s western border with India.

    The construction of more than 1,700 metres long embankment on the Indian side commenced in March this year.

  • Stone pelting, protests in UP cities over Prophet remark; 136 arrested

    By PTI

    LUCKNOW: People pelted stones at police personnel in Prayagraj and Saharanpur and protests broke out after Friday prayers in at least four other cities in Uttar Pradesh over a non-suspended BJP leader’s recent remarks on Prophet Mohammad.

    Police have arrested more than 130 people from six districts of the state.

    In Prayagraj, some motorcycles and carts were set on fire and an attempt was made to set ablaze a police vehicle. Police used tear gas and lathis to disperse mobs and peace was later restored, they said, adding that one policeman was hurt in the region.

    “As many as 136 protesting miscreants were arrested from six districts of the state till 9.45 pm on Friday,” Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar said. He said 45 protesters were arrested from Saharanpur, 37 from Prayagraj, 23 people from Ambedkar Nagar, 20 from Hathras, seven from Moradabad, and four from Firozabad district.

    There was slogan-shouting against the now-suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma over her remarks during a TV debate, which also triggered outrage in several Islamic nations.

    In Saharanpur, protesters demanded the death sentence for her. There were also protests in Bijnor, Moradabad, Rampur and Lucknow over the controversial remarks. Sloganeering took place in Lucknow.

    According to the local people, stone pelting continued for over 15 minutes in Prayagraj. They said some of the miscreants pelted stones at the police personnel deployed on the main road and the situation escalated when more people joined the stone pelters.

    Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Awanish Awasthi said, “Minor force was used to stop some people involved in the violence. The situation in Prayagraj is now peaceful. I would like to appeal to people to use democratic ways of protest without resorting to violence.”

    Uttar Pradesh’s Director General of Police (DGP) D S Chauhan said no life has been lost because of the proper arrangements made by the state police. “Because of our preparedness, no life has been lost. We will take strict action against those found involved in the violence,” he said.

    Additional Director General (ADG), Parayagraj Zone, Prem Prakash said a constable of Rapid Action Force (RAF) was injured during stone pelting in the region. Additional police force and teams of RAF were rushed to the spot. The police also fired tear gas shells and used force to stop the miscreants, he said.

    In Saharanpur, people holding placards raised slogans against Nupur Sharma. Some of them also turned violent after the security personnel tried to stop them. This led to brief stone pelting in the Nehru market area of the city.

    Some madrasa students also raised slogans in the Deoband area. The protesters also raised slogans demanding capital punishment for the suspended BJP leader.

    District Magistrate Akhilesh Singh told PTI, “Police had to retort to force when the protesters refused to hear the appeals of peace by police personnel. The protestors are being identified using CCTV footage for further action.”

    Four people, including the district president of AIMIM, were arrested in Bijnor as a precautionary measure.

    Superintendent of Police Dharamveer Singh said AIMIM district chief Abdullah along with one Iftekhar, Mahroof and Akil were arrested for inciting communal hatred.

    According to the police, the accused called a gathering near Purani Musfi area in Bijnor. The arrests were made on the complaint of people from the Muslim community, the SP said.

    People demanded action against the BJP leader and waved banners with “Arrest Nupur Sharma” written on them in Rampur and Moradabad.

    In Kanpur, which was the epicentre of communal violence last week, the Friday prayers were held in a peaceful manner with no reports of any untoward incident. The prayers were held under a watertight security vigil by police personnel.

    A heavy police force was deployed in the area with senior police and administrative officials present on the spot. This comes following clashes last week in Kanpur over the remarks on the Prophet at a TV debate some days earlier.

    A high alert was issued across the state after that, and a heavy police force was deployed to ensure that violence does not occur again.