Six killed in violence in Haldwani after razing of ''illegally built'' madrasa, mosque

Lucknow: Six people were killed and hundreds others, including cops, local officials and scribes, injured after large-scale violence broke out following razing of ''illegally built'' madrasa (islamic school) and a mosque at Haldwani town in Uttarakhand's Nainital district.

Curfew was clamped in the town and shoot at sight orders were issued besides suspension of internet services in the area as frenzied mobs pelted stones at the police and the anti-encroachment team, damaged a police station and burnt vehicles and a petrol pump on Thursday. The administration has ordered closures of all educational institutions in the town.

While the official sources put the death toll at five, according to the unconfirmed reports six people were killed in the violence. Although it was not clear how these people were killed, sources said that a majority of them were killed in firing by the cops in "self defense".

More than two hundred people, including cops, local officials and scribes, were injured in the violence. While some were discharged after preliminary treatment, many others were admitted to the hospital.

The trouble sparked when hundreds of policemen accompanied by the anti-encroachment team of the Haldwani Municipal Corporation reached the Muslim dominated Malik ka Bagicha area in Banbhoolpura on Thursday to demolish what they termed "illegally built" madrasa and a mosque.

Barely had the bulldozers demolished the structure, a mob comprising local people started pelting stones at the police personnel and the anti-encroachment team forcing them to retreat and run to safety. Eye witness accounts said that the mob went on the rampage attacking the Banphoolpura police station and burning dozens of vehicles and also a petrol pump.

Eye witnesses said that police were caught unawares as the mob surrounded them in the cramped lanes in Banbhoolpura and rained stones on them from the rooftops

A large number of security personnel, including jawans of para military forces, were deployed in the affected area to control the situation. Police officials said in Haldwani that curfew was clamped and shoot at sight order was issued. Army was put on the alert and could be deployed if required, sources added.

Nainital district magistrate Vandana Singh told reporters on Friday that the situation was under control. "We successfully managed to contain and limit the violence to a specific area and foiled attempts by the miscreants to enter the nearby areas and trigger large scale violence...it was an attempt to challenge the state," she said.

The DM said that the administration had earlier also removed encroachment following orders of the court in other areas in the town. "There was no attempt to target the properties of members of a particular community...there was no provocation," she added.

Senior superintendent of police Prahlad Meena said that the madrasa and the mosque had been built on government land and that a notice had been issued to demolish them in compliance with the court order. He said that the miscreants threw petrol bombs and tried to torch a police station. Police said that efforts were on to identify the trouble mongers and added that the National Security Act (NSA) would be slapped on them.

Uttarakhand chief minister Pushker Singh Dhami, who rushed to Haldwani and met the injured, said that the government would not spare those who had indulged in violence.

Haldwani is the gateway to several picturesque hill stations in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand, including Nainital, Ranikhet and others and is flocked by a large number of tourists.

Incidentally the Uttarakhand assembly had barely a couple of days back adopted the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill, which provided for drastic changes in the laws relating to marriage, divorce, adoption and inheritance.