NEW DELHI: The situation in old Delhi’s Lal Kuan remained tense on Tuesday, with a huge deployment of police and paramilitary forces two days after a small temple in the area was allegedly vandalised by a group following a scuffle between two men from different communities.
Three men have been apprehended for their alleged involvement in the desecration of the temple in question, said a senior police official.
He added that they were identified after scanning CCTV footage. “We are trying to identify others,” he said.
The police have created a buffer zone on the road where the two men scuffled over parking. The issue snowballed into communal tension after the two men came to blows and others joined the fight.
Shops that had remained shut on Monday opened on Tuesday morning but were closed again as the situation wasn’t under control.
Members of Hindu fringe groups from other areas gathered and raised slogans against Muslims on a part of the road, while the other part was occupied by Muslim men.
“We believe in peace, but only Hindus can’t make efforts all the time... our idols were destroyed and the police have to take action against those responsible... We want justice for the family that was attacked,” said Sunita Singh, a Bajrang Dal worker from east Delhi’s Mayur Vihar area.
Three separate cases have been registered—one by Aas Mohammad, 20, who had come to park his scooter; the other by Sanjeev Gupta, 45, who along with his family was allegedly attacked by a mob; and the third against unknown assailants for rioting and damaging public property at Hauz Qazi Police Station.
“I was born and brought up here. My family has lived in this area for over hundred years. I have never witnessed a similar situation before. We want this matter to be peacefully resolved. Who wants violence?” asked local resident Mohammad Taqi, 51.
Union health minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, who is MP from Chandni Chowk, on Tuesday visited the temple.
He also held a meeting with senior police officials and asked them to restore peace and nab the perpetrators as soon as possible. Vardhan tweeted that efforts were being made to normalise the situation in the area and said that strict action would be taken against those involved in the incident.“I couldn’t come yesterday as Parliament is in session, but I have been keeping a close watch on the developments. I was in touch with police officials. I am going with the confidence that the police will take action against the culprits,” the minister said.