Police hold peace meeting to settle ‘haircut controversy’
BAREILLY: Peace meetings are usually held to broker peace in case of communal disturbance. But the Swar police in Rampur district held one such meeting on Friday to settle a controversy over haircuts.
The meeting was called after residents of Narpatnagar, a village in Swar block of the district, alleged that barbers refused to give them a haircut.
“All barbers of our village are Muslims who look down upon us. They refuse to cut our hair in their shops,” said Ranjit Valmiki, a resident who lodged a police complaint, alleging that people of his community were being “mistreated by barbers.”
“People from our community have to travel at least 5 km to get a haircut because all the barbers in our village are Muslims who refuse to oblige,” informed Ranjit, who along with other residents, approached the police on Wednesday.
As the matter involved two communities, the police swung into action. Five barbers of the village were detained by cops for harassment of people belonging to backward community and a investigation was launched.
“The complainant wanted an FIR to be lodged but it was
BARBERS DENIED THAT THEY “ALWAYS” REFUSED TO GIVE HAIRCUT TO PEOPLE OF BACKWARD COMMUNITY.
decided to resolve the matter by a peace meeting,” said Rahul Kumar, CO, Swar.
The meeting was attended by senior citizens and residents of both communities of the village. The accused barbers were asked to speak first.
“Everyone who comes to my shop is my customer and I don’t mind his religion or caste. Once in a while people come drunk and we ask them to come later due to objections raised by other customers,” said a barber at the peace meeting.
Other barbers denied that they “always” refused to give haircut to people of backward community.
Police asked complainants to assure that no one from their community would enter a barber shop in an inebriated condition.
People from both sides were also asked to sign on an agreement wherein they promised to “adhere by the decisions taken in the peace meeting and respect people from all communities.”