Gurugram, August 1
A day after a Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) procession was attacked in Nuh and four persons, including two home guards, were killed in the subsequent clashes, the communal violence spread to neighbouring Gurugram today where a mob set a mosque ablaze and shot its imam dead around 5 am.Right wing outfits also set afire about 60 shanties in Badshahpur area near Sector 66 while Muslim shops were vandalised at Pataudi Chowk and in Manesar. Thirty shanties are learnt to have been set ablaze in Palwal too. The VHP has announced a nationwide protest tomorrow and an alert has been issued in the affected districts of Haryana. The situation remained peaceful in Nuh where curfew was clamped even as the police went on to detain 110 persons in connection with 50 FIRs.
The two home guards had died in the violence yesterday while two other persons succumbed to their injuries late in the evening. Section 144 has been imposed in Nuh, Gurugram, Faridabad, Palwal, Rewari, Jhajjar, Sonepat and Panipat districts. Internet services remain suspended in Nuh, Faridabad, Palwal, Sohna, Manesar and Pataudi.
Gurugram, meanwhile, witnessed an unprecedented panic. From torching of a mosque to murder of an imam and torching and vandalisation of shops and shanties, Gurugram was left terrified. The mob is learnt to have even violated a graveyard and pulled down its wall.
The mobsters, who were being chased away by the police and RAF teams, called the vandalisation a “revenge for yesterday’s Nuh attack on the yatra”. The offices closed early and employees have been told to work-from-home till August 4. Online delivery services remained suspended in several parts around Badshahpur. The local administration deployed two RAF companies, comprising over 260 personnel each, in addition to the local police. Security has been beefed up in all Muslim settlements and mosques across the city. The sale of loose petrol has also been banned. DC Nishant Yadav, who led a flag march, maintained that the situation was normal and there was nothing to panic. He announced the opening of schools from tomorrow in all areas except Sohna.
“Security has been tightened at vulnerable spot and mobsters have been detained. We met all stakeholders, including VHP and Bajrang Dal activists, who have assured us of peace. There is no need to panic as Gurugram is returning to normalcy,” said Yadav, adding those accused of torching the mosque and killing an employee inside had been detained by the police. Meanwhile, leaders of INDIA alliance expressed concern over the riots in Nuh and condemned the “divisive policies” of the government.
