Jharkhand’s Jamshedpur experienced communal violence over Ram Navami on Sunday, April 9th, nearly ten days after the festival took place. Sunday’s communal violence in Jamshedpur became the latest instance in a series of riots that took place over the north-Indian Hindu festival throughout India, especially in neighbouring West Bengal’s Shibpur and Rishra, and Bihar’s Sasaram and other areas.
It’s reported that certain organisers of a Ram Navami event in Jamshedpur raised an outcry on Saturday, April 8th, alleging that someone has desecrated a Ram Navami flag hoisted on the road near Shashtri Nagar of Kadma Police Station Area. The organisers alleged that a polythene full of meat was hung from the flag by miscreants.
The protesters organised a massive demonstration in the area on Sunday and raised the demand for the demolition of all meat shops in the locality and renaming the area Bajrang Chowk.
Violence erupted on Sunday evening after miscreants started pelting stones at a particular community’s members. The stone pelting resulted in a large-scale arson; autorickshaws and shops in the Shastri Nagar area were set ablaze by a mob.
A large police force resorted to baton charging and lobbed tear gas shells to disperse the mob and bring the situation under control. Section 144 of the CRPC was imposed in the area and mobile internet was disconnected.
Jamshedpur police chief Prabhat Kumar told news agency ANI that the police rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control and sent the people who had gathered on the streets back home. Kumar also said that adequate police forces and a company of Rapid Action Force (RAF) have been deployed in the area.
The RAF has been conducting route marches in the area even on Monday to maintain law and order. The communal violence in Jamshedpur didn’t spread to other parts of the district and was suppressed successfully according to the police.
K Vijay Shankar, Superintendent of Police, told ANI that 55 suspects from two communities have been arrested for the communal violence in Jamshedpur, including one Abhay Singh who stormed the police station with his supporters and misbehaved with the policemen.
Vijaya Yadav, the deputy police commissioner of East Singhbhum district, said that some people were detained by the police for spreading unrest. She also said that police along with citizens, peacekeeping committees and others are trying to restore peace and normalcy in the affected areas.
Yadav claimed that the communal violence in Jamshedpur on Sunday was the work of some anti-social elements. She said while deploying the appropriate forces, the police requested the public not to pay heed to rumours. Yadav appealed to the public to immediately report any provocative message or information to the police.
