In Short
- Violent clashes in Nagpur after protest rally over Aurangzeb row
- 30 injured as vehicles set ablaze, stones hurled
- BJP claims clashes ‘pre-planned, Hindu houses targetted’
Nagpur witnessed violent clashes on Friday evening leaving more than 30 people injured hours after Hindu outfits held a protest demanding removal of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s tomb in Maharashtra’s Sambhaji Nagar. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) claimed that the violence was pre-planned.
Nearly 60 to 65 rioters have been taken into custody, 25 to 30 personnel have been injured, and about 25 bikes and three cars were set on fire after a massive clash between two groups in the Mahal area of the city.
BJP MLA from Nagpur Central Pravin Datke, who visited the incident site, claimed that the violent clashes were pre-planned.
He said, “This entire thing was preplanned. After an agitation yesterday morning, an incident took place at Ganesh Peth police station, then everything was normal… Later, the mob entered only Hindu houses and shops… First, all the cameras were broken and then the violence was carried out with weapons in a preplanned manner.”
He further alleged that the police did not stand with the Hindu citizens and claimed that a large part of the mob came from the outside.
The clashes come amid a massive controversy over the Aurangzeb tomb in Sambhaji Nagar, with Hindu outfits like Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) seeking its demolition. The two groups also held protests in Nagpur on Monday morning, hours before the clashes broke out.
This story was originally published in indiatoday.in. Read the full story here.
