Gujarat reported two more cases of communal Violence over the last three nights resulting in the arrest of more than 60 people.
With this new cases reported from Veraval town in Gir Somnath district and Vadodara, the state has reported four such cases over the past week.
Veraval Incident
On Monday, police arrested 30 people in the coastal town of Veraval for hoisting a saffron flag on Magrebisha Bapu Dargah in Vakhariya Bazar during a Hanuman Jayanti procession on Saturday night.
When the procession passed through the shrine, someone climbed on top of it and hoisted the flag. Meanwhile, others in the procession videotaped the incident and shared it on social media. As a result, tensions between the two communities arose. However, the police were able to intervene in time, preventing riots.
He also said that two separate FIRs had been registered against the accused under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 153 A (promoting enmity between two communities), 295 A (Injuring or defiling place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class), and section 188 for taking out the procession without police permission.
Vadodara Incident
Meanwhile, rioting in Vadodara is said to have started after a two-wheeler rider was assaulted at Amdavadi Pol on Sunday night, when clashes erupted between two groups from different communities in the Jubileebaug area.
The clashes quickly devolved into rioting, resulting in stone pelting, vehicle vandalism, and the desecration of a Sai Baba temple.
The mob dispersed as police teams reached the area along with local leaders to probe into the incident. The police said they had arrested about 30 people in the matter, as per Deccan Herald.
Earlier Clashes
Earlier on 10 April, one person was killed, and another sustained injuries as communal clashes erupted in Gujarat’s Khambhat city during a Ram Navami procession. Similar clashes also ensued in Himmatnagar and Dwarka, with at least 15 people being arrested in the former municipality.
On April 11, Himmatnagar in north Gujarat’s Sabarkantha also witnessed violent clashes between the two communities. The police have arrested 11 persons so far for the riots.