Caste violence simmered with cases of stone-pelting and clashes in Uttar Pradesh, even as the State Government on Wednesday transferred top police officials in Saharanpur.
Superintendent of Police (City) Sanjay Singh and SP (Rural) Rafeeq Ahmed were transferred out of Saharanpur and Prabal Pratap Singh and Vidya Sagar were appointed in their place a day after a police post was burnt and over 20 vehicles torched in Saharanpur.
Meanwhile, tension gripped in Rashid Ghar village in neighbouring Shamli district following the alleged desecration of a statue of Dalit icon BR Ambedkar. The incident was reported on Tuesday when the locals spotted the damaged structure under Thana Bhawan police station area in Shamli district, Circle Officer Sunil Tyagi said.
A police team was rushed to the spot after hundreds of people protested against the incident. He said a case has been registered against unidentified miscreants. Security has been tightened in the area, police added.
In Saharanpur, there has been violence and clashes between Thakurs and Dalits since May 5 with instances of stone pelting and clashes followed by torching of a police post and over 20 vehicles on Tuesday.
It started on May 5 in Shabbirpur village of Saharanpur district after the Dalits objected to loud music being played by Thakurs in a procession. A Thakur man was killed and 25 Dalit homes burned while caste slurs were exchanged over the social media. A call for a massive gathering of Dalits was made under the aegis of Bheem Army. They asked for a Dalit “mahapanchayat” to be held against the violence committed in Shabbirpur.
Accordingly, on May 9 a crowd of over a thousand people, mainly Dalits mobilised under the banner of Bheem Army. .
Senior Superintendent of Police Subhash Chand Dubey said the district administration had not permitted any such gathering. Police acted against the people gathered for the ‘mahapanchayat’ which led to tension and a stampede-like situation.