'Bulldozer to be Used, Will Recover Damages from Rioters': Anil Vij on Haryana Violence; 202 Held

Nuh Superintendent of Police Varun Singla has been transferred days after it came to light that the senior officer was on leave when the violent clashes broke out at the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) rally. The order copy released late on Thursday stated that Singla has been posted to Bhiwani.

Meanwhile, security has been deployed outside Jama Masjid in Gurugram’s Sadar Bazar ahead of Friday prayers and the Haryana government launched a crackdown on social media activities in the violence-hit state.

The tight vigil by police officers comes a day after a mosque was set on fire in Haryana’s Nuh district, and two brothers belonging to the Muslim community were allegedly beaten up in Gurugram by a group of about 30 people.

A community leader had on Thursday announced that members of the Muslim community will not offer Friday namaz at any mosque or open space in Gurugram in view of the communal violence.

Mufti Saleem Qasmi, president of Jamiat Ulama in Gurugram, appealed through a video message to people to refrain from praying in public places or gathering in mosques for prayers. In the district, some shops near Jama Masjid were closed. However, markets in other areas were open, police said.

They Were Involved In Violence: Nuh SP on Bulldozer Move

Nuh SP on Friday confirmed the involvement of some miscreants from the slum where a bulldozer was used by the administration to raze over 200 shanties against those who took part in the violence.

He further informed that the police have also arrested a few who were allegedly involved in violence and were living in anonymity in slums.

Haryana Govt on Social Media Alert

Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said that the state government is closely monitoring social media activities in the violence-hit state.

“We are scanning every social media…We have made a special committee which includes the members from the IT Cell. It will scan the entire social media scene. During the scan, if it is revealed that someone has put out inciteful posts then action will be taken.”

Home Minister’s Latest Statement on Haryana Violence

Haryana home minister Anil Vij, on the other hand, said that wherever necessary, bulldozer will be used. “We have act to recover the loss of property from the rioters,” he added. Vij further informed that the government has taken all the CCTV footage and registered FIRs based on it.

“So far, 102 FIRs have been registered and 202 people have been arrested. As many as 80 people have been taken in preventive custody,” the minister said.

Present Situation in Haryana

There is complete peace in Gurugram. Our teams are stationed across the district. No fresh incident of violence took place in the district on Thursday, said Varun Dahiya, ACP (Crime).

Police said that besides that mosque that was set on fire, another went up in flames apparently due to a short circuit. The mosque incidents, in which nobody was injured, took place around 11:30 pm on Wednesday while the Gurugram incident occurred on Wednesday evening, they said. While one of the mosques is located near Vijay Chowk, the other is near a police station. Both mosques suffered some damage, police said.

Authorities in both districts said no fresh cases of violence were reported on Thursday, asserting that the situation is under control.

Before his transfer, Varun Singla on Thursday said, “Light arson has been done in one mosque while short circuit seems to be the reason for the fire in the other. The police took control of the situation and are conducting raids to nab the suspects.”

Soon after getting the information, fire brigades were rushed to the two mosques and the blaze was doused, police said.

A senior police officer said they are trying to identify the accused with the help of CCTV cameras installed in nearby areas. Earlier, police had said that Molotov cocktails were hurled at the two mosques.

Haryana Additional Chief Secretary (Home) T V S N Prasad on Thursday claimed that the situation is fast returning to normal in the state. He also said a centre of the Rapid Action Force, CRPF’s anti-riot unit, will soon be set up in Nuh.

A total of 176 people have been arrested and 93 FIRs registered in five districts, including 46 in Nuh and 23 in Gurugram, in connection with the communal clashes in Haryana, Prasad told a presser in Chandigarh.

The Haryana government has constituted a committee that will monitor social media platforms to prevent the circulation of provocative material to maintain law and order and communal harmony in the state.

Curfew, meanwhile, was relaxed in Nuh on Thursday. “People can buy daily essentials from 10 am to 1 pm,” Nuh Deputy Commissioner Prashant Panwar said, adding the curfew will be relaxed again on Friday for three hours from 10 am.

Mobile internet and SMS services in Nuh and some other places in the state, which were suspended till August 5, were also restored for three hours from 1 pm on Thursday.

Six people, including two home guards and a cleric, have died in the clashes that erupted in Nuh over an attempt to stop a Vishva Hindu Parishad procession and spread to Gurugram and other districts of the state over the past few days.

Nuh SP Singla, who returned from leave on Thursday, said a total of 139 accused have been arrested so far in connection with the Monday’s violence in the district.

A special search operation was conducted in several villages by the teams of CIA and STF. Three fresh FIRs were registered against those hailing the attack on social media. Three SITs headed by DSP rank officials are investigating the FIRs. As many as 13 companies of paramilitary forces and 21 companies of Haryana Police have been deployed in the district, he added.

Singla said in the wake of mosque incidents in Tauru on Wednesday night, police personnel have been deployed at the two mosques to ensure security. In neighbouring Gurugram, two men identified as Nisar Ali and his brother Rustam Ali, were allegedly beaten up on Wednesday evening by a group of about 30 people, police said.

The victims, natives of Malda district in West Bengal, are living in a slum in Palda village here. According to a complaint by Nisar Ali, a group of about 25 to 30 youths came to the slum on Tuesday and told the dwellers to leave the city by Wednesday.

On Wednesday at around 7 pm, I, along with my brother Rustam Ali, was going to the slum from Sector 70. On the way near the cricket ground, four-five youths came and asked my name and after that they started beating us.

Soon, over 25 youths joined them and thrashed us badly. They fled away when some people gathered there, Nisar Ali said in his complaint. Following the complaint, an FIR was registered against unidentified youths under relevant sections of IPC, including section 147 (riots), at Badshahpur police station on Wednesday night.

An FIR has been registered and we are trying to nab the accused, said Satish Kumar, SHO of Badshahpur police station.

Meanwhile, Haryana DGP P K Aggarwal and Additional DGP (CID) Alok Mittal held a meeting with senior police officials in Faridabad and took stock of the situation in the district.

In the meeting, Police Commissioner Vikas Arora apprised the DGP about the situation in Faridabad, police spokesperson Sube Singh said. As a precautionary measure, five companies of various forces, including one CRPF and one IRB, have been called.

An attempt was made to vandalise a religious place by some anti-social elements at Kail village in Sector 58. An FIR was registered and accused Ravi and Pravesh, both from Palwal, were arrested.

Four accused, identified as Ashu, Dheeraj, Prince and Kuldeep, residents of Trikha Colony, were arrested for vandalising a religious place in Raghubir Colony, Arora informed the meeting.

In Faridpur village, some miscreants vandalised two houses from outside and two accused, Gaurav and Sanju, were arrested, he said. In view of the communal violence, eight liquor vends have been closed for the next two days, Faridabad Deputy Commissioner Vikram Singh said in a statement.

(with inputs from PTI)