Saharanpur again: 1 dead, 5 hurt in attack on Dalits returning from Maya function

SAHARANPUR/LUCKNOW: One person died of gunshot wounds and five others were injured in attacks on Dalits at three different places while they were returning home after attending BSP chief Mayawati’s programme, in Shabbirpur village of the district on Tuesday evening.

The state government has sounded an alert in Saharanpur following the fresh violence.

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath reviewed the situation in a meeting with principal secretary, Home, Arvind Kumar and DGP Sulkhan Singh. He directed secretary, Home, Mani Prasad Mishra, DG, security, Vijay Kumar, ADG (Law and Order) Aditya Mishra and IG, STF, Amitabh Yash to rush to the spot and assist the local police in maintaining law and order.

The officers will camp in Saharanpur till the situation normalizes. They have been told to identify the culprits and take strict action against them. He also expressed grief over the death of a person.

According to reports, unidentified miscreants, who were hiding in a roadside mango orchard, attacked the Dalits with lathis and sharp edge weapons at two different places near Chandpura village, leaving five people injured. In another attack near the same village, a Dalit was shot from close range and he succumbed to injuries during treatment at the district hospital.

District magistrate of Saharanpur N P Singh confirmed the death of one person and injuries to five others. He said “a massive search operation had been launched to identify and arrest the assailants.” Meanwhile, in Lucknow a senior police officer said Dalits pelted stones on the houses of Thakurs after Mayawati left the spot. Later the Thakurs retaliated and attacked the Dalits. Additional director general of police (Meerut zone) Anand Kumar rushed to the spot with additional force. PAC personnel, too, have been deployed in the area in order to prevent any further caste clashes which the area experienced on May 5 that left one person killed and over 15 others injured. Earlier in the day some miscreants tried to vitiate the atmosphere by setting heaps of hay and dung cakes on fire in the Thakur locality in Shabbirpur village during the visit of Mayawati there. Fire tenders were called and officials controlled the situation. Earlier on Tuesday, Mayawati met the victims of the May 5 caste clashes and held the BJP government responsible for caste conflicts in the state. Late in the evening Cabinet minister Srikanth Sharma blamed Mayawati for the violence.