BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday ordered an administrative inquiry by the Revenue Divisional Commissioner (RDC), Central, into the clash between devotees and police at Chadak Mela ground at Chandaneswar on Thursday.
The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) said the RDC has been asked to submit the report within 60 days. Seven police personnel __ one havildar, five constables and one driver __ have been suspended in connection with the incident.
The Chadak Mela ground at Chandaneswar, about 90 km from Balasore, turned into a battle ground when police resorted to ‘lathicharge’ after a scuffle ensued between devotees and cops deployed there. As many as 50 persons, including a dozen cops, were injured in the clash. It started during the Mela Chandani Parva, a ritual in which devotees throw mud and sandalwood paste on one another. The cops allegedly beat up a couple of devotees mercilessly when the mud fell on the former.
The police, however, said the scuffle started after some devotees misbehaved with a girl who had come to witness the festival along with her family.