Violence erupts in UP's Kasganj again, Curfew imposed

Violence erupted in Uttar Pradesh's communally sensitive Kasganj town again on Saturday as rioters torched several buses and shops and indulged in heavy stone pelting.

One person was killed and around a dozen others,  including cops, were injured in communal clashes in the town during a motorbike rally by ABVP and VHP members on the Republic Day.

According to the police sources here, violence flared up after a mob of people, while returning after cremating the dead, clashed with members of the other community.

Sources said that several buses and shops were torched and shots were also fired during the clashes. Police have so far arrested around 30 people in connection with the violence.

Curfew was imposed in the town after the violence and all educational institutions had been closed.

The borders of the district had been sealed and security personnel in strength had been deployed to maintain law and order, sources said.

Police sources said that firebrand saffron leader Sadhvi Prachi was detained while she was on way to Kasganj with her supporters. BJP Lok Sabha member Rajveer Singh, who visited Kasganj on Saturday, alleged that the violence was ''pre-planned''.  

The trouble had sparked off during a motorbike rally by the members of the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) on the occasion of Republic Day.

An ABVP worker was allegedly hit by a bullet and later succumbed to his injuries at the hospital. Around a dozen people, including cops, were injured in the violence. At least one of the injured was stated to be in a critical condition.