Hundreds injured in stand-off outside ashram
NEW DELHI: About 200 people were injured yesterday when police stormed the north Indian compound of a self-styled guru that has been barricaded for days by thousands of his supporters.
The Punjab and Haryana High Court had ordered the police to arrest 63-year-old Baba Rampal after he failed to respond to a summons during a bail hearing on a murder case.
Thousands of Rampal’s followers gathered outside his ashram in the Hissar district of Haryana state for more than a week, refusing to allow police in, saying he was unwell.
Women and children squatted outside the gates of the ashram, forming a human shield, police said. More than 10 000 police officers were deployed in the operation to arrest Rampal, and yesterday they started removing his supporters.
Local television showed police advancing with shields and helmets and firing tear gas as Rampal’s followers perched on roofs and pelted them with stones. At least 105 policemen were injured and two were treated for bullet wounds. More than 85 followers of Rampal were injured.
Over the past week police have stopped all traffic to the ashram and cut off amenities, including water and electricity.
The guru is on bail relating to a case in 2006 when his supporters fired at villagers, killing one and injuring several.
He worked as an engineer in the Haryana government’s irrigation department for 18 years before becoming a spiritual leader. – Sapa-dpa