14 arrested, over 200 booked for bandh violence in Faridabad

FARIDABAD: After facing criticism for poor handling of the Bharat Bandh protest on Monday, police arrested 13 people and booked over 200 others late Monday night. The protest — which was against Supreme Court’s March 20 order which allegedly ‘dilutes’ certain provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act 1989 — turned violent with many vandalising government and private property and resorting to stone-pelting, causing injuries to 12 policemen on Monday.

Police started scanning CCTV footage to identify the accused. “In our area, we arrested 8 accused, who caused damage to public properties,” SHO Kotwali Bharat Bhushan said.

“They were arrested after an FIR against them was registered under sections 148, 149, 332, 353, 186, 341, 283 of IPC and Prevention of Damage of Public Property Act in our police station,” he said. “The remaining were arrested from Central area,” police said.

Railway police registered a case against over 200 accused for damaging railway property and succeeded in arresting one Sonu, 30, from Saran area in the case. The accused was produced before the court which remanded him to police custody.

“Our teams are on the job”, an officials spokesman said, hinting that more arrests would follow after taking stock of the situation

The protesters armed with lathis and stones caused damage to Janshatabadi train at New Town Railway Station Monday morning due to which some passengers were injured. “We have arrested one Sonu in connection with rail property damage case and rest will be arrested very soon,” said Mohinder Singh, DSP Railway police.

“This was for the first time that such an organised mob armed with lathis and stones descended on the roads, markets, malls, highways generating fear in the public,” said a medical shop owner. “We were left with no option but to close shops as irate mob went on damaging properties,” he added.