CLASH IN DELHI
damaged a number of parked vehicles and shops.
Eyewitnesses HT spoke to were divided, with some saying the attack on the procession was unprovoked while others said that there were attempts made to hoist saffron flags on a mosque amid provocative sloganeering.
Police officials did not confirm either sequence of events and said the matter was under investigation.
The groups were broken up and by late night, heavy police deployment with cops armed with tear gas shells was in the area to prevent further violence.
Other parts of the national capital were also put on high alert in the evening. Delhi police commissioner Rakesh Asthana said the situation was under control and that an order had been issued to senior police officers to be on the field. He warned rioters of strict action.
The communal clash in Jahangirpuri is the first major such incident since the 2020 Delhi riots in which 53 people died and 619 were injured.
In the last week, clashes between groups took place when Ram Navami processions were taken out in Gujarat, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal, and Odisha.
Clashes also took place in Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) when Left-affiliated student groups and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (AVBP) members fought over the serving of non-vegetarian food in a hostel mess on Ram Navami.
At the site of Saturday’s clashes, broken glass, bricks and stones were strewn. Police said the rioters had used bottles from a scrap shop in the area.
“Police are here for the safety of residents. There are enough police personnel here. The situation is under control. We will identify the rioters,” said special commissioner of police (zone 1) Dependra Pathak, who was present at the spot.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal urged citizens to maintain peace and condemned the stone pelting. “The reports of stone pelting in Jahangirpuri during the shobha yatra are condemnable. Strict action should be taken against those who are guilty. Appeal to all people — Keep peace by holding each other’s hands,” he tweeted in Hindi.
Kejriwal also said he had spoken to Delhi lieutenant governor Anil Baijal, who assured him that “all steps were being taken to ensure peace and that the guilty would not be spared”.
Union home minister Amit Shah stepped in as he spoke to police commissioner Asthana for an update on the situation, officials said.
Within hours of the reports of stone pelting, several videos began circulating on social media showing rioters pelting stones, shouting slogans and carrying swords. HT could not independently confirm the authenticity of the videos.