1 dead, 14 hurt in Kaithal communal clash

BADSUI: A 54-year-old man died and 14 people were injured in clashes over the demarcation of a piece of land between the shrines of two communities in Kaithal’s Badui village, police said on Saturday.

The altercation was over the division of land between a gurdwara and a temple on “shamlat” (common) land, Kaithal superintendent of police Wasim Akram said.

When the members of one community began building a boundary wall, those of the other community got agitated, he said. Both groups used sticks and threw bricks at each other. In the melee, Shamsher Singh Punia received head injuries and died in a hospital.

He was cremated amid heavy police deployment. The injured, Sandeep Punia, Partap Singh, Manprit, Devendra Singh, Sarbjit, Karamjit and Ranjit were admitted to Rajendra Hospital, Patiala, whereas two others Baljit and Jagmail Singh were referred to Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh.

Members of the other group, Charan Singh, Amit, Ravinder, Ravi Shankar, Dev Raj, Ajay and Mahinder, were also admitted to the Kaithal civil hospital with injuries.

The SP said 36 people have been booked by name under Sections 302 (murder), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means) and 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon) of the Indian Penal Code. Sixteen people were detained for interrogation.

Kaithal deputy commissioner Priyanka Soni said the situation was under control now. Rajesh Kumar, a resident of the village, said ₹5 lakh was allocated to the village under MPLAD funds and the money was being spent on construction of a boundary wall and this led to the clash.

CLASH BREAKS OUT OVER DEMARCATION OF A CHUNK OF LAND BETWEEN 2 SHRINES, BADSUI VILLAGE TENSE