One dead, many hurt as Thakur community clash with Dalits in Uttar Pradesh

According to reports, several members of the Thakur community were proceeding to Shilkana village to celebrate Maharana Pratap’s birth anniversary.

LUCKNOW: Within a fortnight, violence has gripped Sahranpur district again as Thakurs and Dalits indulged in vandalism, arson and gunfire leaving one dead and dozens injured, over playing music during a Maharana Pratap Jayanti procession in Shabbirpur village.

According to reports, several members of the Thakur community were proceeding to Shilkana village to celebrate Maharana Pratap’s birth anniversary.

A few Thakurs from Shabbirpur village were also leaving for Shilkana in a procession. While they were passing through a Dalit locality, the residents objected to loud music played by them.

This led to an altercation and the Dalits allegedly resorted to stone pelting. As news of the violence spread to nearby villages, hundreds of Thakurs went to the locality and in retaliation torched more than 20 Dalit homes.

The situation worsened as both sides came face to face and indulged in stone pelting and gunfire on each other leaving over a dozen people injured. The district’s police force along with senior officials of the department and administration, including the district magistrate, deputy inspector general (DIG),
senior superintendent of police (SSP), SP (rural) and others rushed to the spot.

In the melee, Sumit Pal (21) from Thakur community, later, succumbed to his injuries in a nearby primary health centre. According to Saharanpur SSP Subhash Chandra Dubey, there was no prior permission for taking out the procession.

“We will act strictly against those who violated the law. Though the trouble makers indulged in arson, not much damage has been done to property and now things are very much in control,” he stated.

Heavy police force has been deployed in nearby villages as well in order to prevent the escalation of violence.

According to police sources, the tension between the two communities was simmering ever since the Thakurs had objected to the Dalit’s installation of a statue at a Ravidas temple here.

The incident has happened exactly two weeks after the violence at Sadak Dudhali village in the district where several persons were injured when a shobhayatra on the occasion of Ambedkar Jayanti turned violent.

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