Hyderabad riots: Death toll reaches 2

Hyderabad: A day after curfew was imposed in eight more localities, tension prevailed in trouble-torn areas in the city which witnessed death of two persons and injuries to 90 others in communal violence since Saturday.

"The situation is tense in major parts of Hyderabad but no fresh incidents of violence have been reported since last night," Andhra Pradesh DGP RR Girish Kumar said on Wednesday.

Since the situation was peaceful in South Zone, "we may relax curfew there in a phased manner," Kumar said.

"However, there will not be any relaxation in the new city area, where curfew was clamped yesterday (Tuesday) after fresh violence," he said.

Curfew was imposed in 17 police station limits in South Zone on Monday. The new curfew-bound areas are Tappachabutra, Afzal Gunj, Kulsumpura, Shahinayat Gunj, Mangalhat, Asif Nagar, Begum Bazaar and Habib Nagar, taking the number of such localities to 25 across the city.

A youth died in clashes on Tuesday near Haradarwaja, where two groups indulged in heavy stone-pelting.

At least eight persons, including two policemen, were injured in another stone-pelting incident in Musheerabad area last evening when a group threw stones on a rally taken out on the occasion of Human Jayanthi, police said adding, one person was stabbed in Malakpet area.

DCP Traffic Ravi Varma was injured on Tuesday night when an unruly mob hurled stones at his vehicle in Mallepally under Humayun Nagar station limits.

He was admitted to a hospital and is said to be out of danger.

Over 150 people have been taken into custody in connection with communal clashes since Saturday, a senior police official said.

Meanwhile, the state government has cancelled the SSC examinations in two subjects, which were to be held on Wednesday and Thursday in 410 centres in Hyderabad. The new schedule is expected to be announced soon.

Osmania University degree examinations, scheduled to be held today, has also been postponed till April 7.

With 40 per cent areas in the city under curfew, citizens are finding it difficult to purchase milk and essential commodities. Traffic has been diverted on many routes in violence-hit areas to avoid trouble.

The clashes erupted on Saturday night in Moosabowli area of Hussaini Alam when members of a community wanted to erect religious flags near a place of worship which was objected to by the other community.