Firing in Nuh, clashes in Rohtak
7 injured; 12 FIRs registered; minister’s aide held for booth capturing
ROHTAK/HISAR/NUH: Sporadic violence, including two firing incidents in Nuh district, marred an otherwise peaceful polling for the 90 Haryana assembly seats on Monday. Additional director general of police, law and order, Navdeep Virk, said 12 FIRs related to violence during polling were registered on Monday. “There were two incidents of firing in Nuh district and seven persons were injured. There were no casualty,’’ Virk said.
He said minor incidents of clashes were also reported from Rohtak and Narnaul. The ADGP said number of FIRs registered were much less this time as compared to 34 registered in the 2014 assembly polls. As had happened during the Lok Sabha polls, co-operation minister Manish Grover was at the centre of a controversy yet again. The Rohtak police registered a first information report (FIR) against Grover’s aide Papan Gulia, a councillor, and his brother Babal for alleged booth capturing at booth number 69 in Rohtak assembly constituency, from where Grover is contesting as a BJP candidate.
DSP (headquarters), Rohtak, Gorakhpal Rana, said they have arrested the councillor and efforts were on to nab his brother also. During the 2019 Lok Sabha polls also, the minister and his aide Ramesh Lohar, a historysheeter were booked for alleged booth capturing.
In Mewat region adjoining Gurgaon district, a woman was injured as a clash took place between two groups outside a polling booth in Malaaka village in Nuh district, a senior police official said. An argument broke out between the present sarpanch and his predecessor after which their supporters clashed. Nuh SP Sangeeta Kalia said stones were also hurled during which one woman was injured. “However, the polling process was not hampered,” the SP told PTI. The village where clash took place falls in Ferozepur Jhirka assembly constituency, she said. An old enmity between the two groups was stated to be the reason behind the clash. “We have registered an FIR in connection with the incident. Further investigations were on,” Kalia said. There were also reports of a firing incident and skirmish at a few places in Nuh district but Kalia said these were not related to the poll.
Tension prevailed in Dumer Khan village in Jind under Uchana Kalan assembly seat after the Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) candidate from Uchana Dushyant Chautala alleged attack by unidentified persons and bogus polling. Dushyant is locked in a contest with BJP candidate BJPs Prem Lata, wife of former Union Minister Birender Singh. Dumer Khan is the native village of Birender. His son Brijendra Singh is MP from Hisar.
Talking to media persons, Dushyant alleged that a BJP agent also tried to hurl a glass at him. He made a complaint about bogus polling to the deputy commissioner Aditya Dahiya and SP Ashwin Shenvi. Soon after the complaint, additional police force was deployed. A dispute between Congress and BJP workers took place at a polling booth located at Haryana Agriculture University but police dispersed the workers. The police also foiled a clash between BJP and Congress workers in Budana village in Narnaund segment. BJP spokesperson Suresh Kumar said, “The allegations were baseless and the party was ready for a probe.”
A WOMAN WAS INJURED AS A CLASH TOOK PLACE BETWEEN TWO GROUPS OUTSIDE A POLLING BOOTH IN MEWAT; MINOR CLASHES ALSO OCCUR IN ROHTAK, NARNAUL