Days after violence broke out in Maharashtra’s Nagpur following a call by right-wing outfits to remove Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s tomb, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Saturday that the cost of damages caused during the arson and vandalism would be “recovered from the rioters themselves”.
“The cost of total damages caused during the riots will be calculated and will be recovered from the rioters themselves. If they fail to pay for the damages, their property will be sold,” Fadnavis said, addressing the media in Nagpur.
Asked if he would take ‘bulldozer action’ like in Uttar Pradesh, Fadnavis said, “Action in Maharashtra would be taken in our way, wherever bulldozer action is needed we will definitely do that. No one will be spared.”
Fadnavis reiterated the government’s firm stance against violence and informed that the authorities have so far identified 104 accused and arrested 92, including 12 juveniles who have been apprehended. “Over 68 inflammatory social media posts linked to the riots have been flagged and deleted,” Fadnavis said, warning that people who incited violence through social media would also be treated as co-accused in the case.
Dismissing concerns about intelligence failure, Fadnavis admitted that while intelligence gathering could have been better, it was not a complete lapse. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming visit to Nagpur will proceed as planned, Fadnavis said, with no changes to the schedule. PM Modi is expected to visit the RSS headquarters at Nagpur on March 30.
Fadnavis clarified that a Bangladeshi angle to the violence cannot be confirmed right now, adding that some social media profiles were found to be sharing content from Bangladesh. The chief minister also said that certain parties from Malegaon were found to be supporting the accused rioters.
Dismissing a political angle behind the violence, Fadnavis stressed that harsh action would be taken against those involved. He acknowledged that there were indications of a pre-planned attack, but an official confirmation will be made only after the investigation is complete.
This story was originally published in indianexpress.com. Read the full story here.
