2 dead in Aurangabad as dispute over water takes communal turn
MUMBAI: Two people were killed and several injured in clashes that broke out between groups of two communities following a minor dispute between two persons at Aurangabad in Central Maharashtra, 355km from Mumbai, on Friday night.
About 100 shops and a large number of vehicles were set on fire as mobs ran riot through parts of the city. Police issued firing orders and a curfew was imposed. Around 11 police personnel were also injured. On Saturday evening, the situation was tense but under control, said local authorities.
Jaganlal Bansile, 62, with physical impairment, was charred to death while Abdul Halim Haroon Qadri, 17, died of bullet injuries in police firing. Police has detained 41 people.
The clashes began in Gandhi Nagar area after 10pm on Friday and the violence soon spread to other parts of the city, police said.
A drive taken up by local municipal authorities against illegal water connections in the city two days ago is what reportedly caused the violence. The officials had cancelled a connection at a religious place, to which some locals protested while demanding that connection to a religious structure belonging to the other community too be cancelled.
Taking note, the authorities took action on the other religious structure but it led to tension between the two groups.
However, the trigger for the violence was a minor dispute between two persons over borrowing a mobile phone which turned into clashes among two groups the next day and later spread in several parts of the city.
Aurangabad police commissioner Milind Bharambe said there were two rounds of violence, first on Friday night followed by another early Saturday. “It was a minor issue but the tension escalated due to rumours. We have imposed section 144 of the CRPC. I appeal people to help police maintain peace,” he added.
Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who was in Pune on Saturday, said, “Riots ensued following a very petty issue. Investigation is on to identify the culprits.”
The state government has also deployed units of State Reserve Police Force, Indian Reserve Police (IRP) Battalion in the city.