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Violence broke out in B K Dutt Colony near the Jorbagh karbala in South Delhi on Saturday evening following an altercation between a group of residents and members of the karbala. Police said the situation soon escalated with both sides pelting stones at each other for over two hours. Senior police officers said three people have been injured in the violence.
“Around 7.30 pm, control room got a call about stone pelting in the area. No one has been arrested or detained so far and Section 144 has not been imposed. The Hindu residents of B K Dutt Colony are refusing to go to their homes. Over 200 people have been out on the streets since evening,” a senior officer said.
A team, comprising the DCP (South), three ACPs, eight to 10 SHOs and their respective forces, is camping in the area to diffuse tension.
Police said there were vastly differing versions on what started the altercation. Colony residents said members of the Karbala intended to cut down a holy “peepul” tree. “Around 6 pm, a group began sawing the tree. When we objected, there was an altercation. The man wielding the cutter turned it towards one of our boys. Residents then collected outside the masjid to protest peacefully. But they began pelting stones at us. They also set fire to a banner outside the masjid to make it seem like we attacked them,” Rajeev Sahni, a resident of B K Dutt Colony, said.
Syed Bilal Hussain, a member of the dargah Shah-E-Mardan committee, rubbished these allegations. “We have not harmed the tree in 25 years, despite it being on our premises, because we know it will upset people. We were only cleaning the area as we always do before Muharram. But they assaulted our people and began pelting stones. Police were standing by as this happened,” he said.
“Some youths were attacked by the mob in the presence of policemen,” Mohammad Irfan, who lives near the dargah, said.
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