Bid to set mosque on fire in Kasganj, 2 cops suspended
BAREILLY: Miscreants on Monday morning attempted to set afire a mosque in Ganjdundwara area, about 30km from Kasganj city that recently witnessed communal violence.
“The incident occurred at 4:30am. Cops from local police station and a reserve battalion was sent to the spot. No one was injured in the fire. But the entrance of the mosque was damaged. The blaze was put off by locals with the help of police personnel,” said Kasganj district magistrate RP Singh.
Police have registered a complaint against unidentified persons and initiated a probe.
“We will not tolerate such incidents. Our teams are on lookout for those involved in the matter. They will be put behind bars for this,” said Kasganj superintendent of police Piyush Srivastav.
Two constables Harisharan Gautam and Nagendra Kumar, deployed with Cobra Bike squad for patrolling were suspended for laxity. They had been attached to the police lines, said Srivastav.
Kasganj witnessed communal clashes on Republic Day after a youth was shot during a ‘Tiranga Yatra’ taken out by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad.
Several properties were set on fire in the aftermath. Prohibitory orders were issued in the district following the clashes.
The district police have so far arrested over 125 people for the clashes, which are being probed by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed by the state government.