Protesters clash with cops, lawyers; Sec 144 clamped
protesters on Monday clashed with advocates in the Bikaner district court during the Bharat bandh.
Bandh supporters and advocates fought a pitched battle for a number of hours. Later, Dalit protesters vandalised street vends and set a motorcycle ablaze, police said.
Bikaner district collector Anil Gupta imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 in the city as the violence escalated. Prohibitory orders will remain in force until midnight of April 4, Gupta said. Dalit protesters took to the city streets in large groups armed with hockey sticks and batons to enforce the shutdown.
A large number of protesters and police personnel were injured in the scuffle between the protestors and the police, reports said. Police fired a number of rounds of tear gas and carried out a baton-charge to disperse the angry mob, reports said.
In other districts of the Bikaner division, too, the situation remained tense through the day, police said. “The situation in Bikaner police range is tense but under control,” said inspector general of police (Bikaner division) Bipin Kumar Pandey.
He further said that shops and business establishments were forcibly shut down as Bheem Sena activists created ruckus.
At some places, protesters faced resistance from traders and
BIKANER/BARMER:Dalit
shop owners who did not want to shut their shops that agitated the protesters and they ransacked shops and threw stocks on to the street, police said.
A number of incidents of violence were also reported from Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh districts. Bikaner’s collector Gupta, who is the acting divisional commissioner, suspended Internet services in four districts, including Bikaner, Churu, Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh until 5 pm till April 3.
STONE PELTING IN BARMER
The law and order situation in Barmer collapsed on Monday as protesters clashed with police, pelting stones at a police station.
Following the violence district collector Shiv Kumar Nakate imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 in the city and Siwana area of the district.
Anarchy ruled the streets of Barmer for more than four hours between 9 am to 1 pm, police said.
Prohibitory orders were imposed at noon, said district collector Nakate. He also wrote to the Jodhpur divisional commissioner for suspension of Internet services in the district.
Protestors forcefully closed essential services, including medical shops and petrol pumps, police said, adding that protestors even stopped and damaged an ambulance.
Protesters also put up blockaded the national highway and disrupted plying of public transport, reports said.