Uneasy calm in curfew bound MP’s Khategaon township

By Pervez Bari, TwoCircles.net,

Bhopal: Uneasy calm prevails in curfew bound Madhya Pradesh’s Khategaon township in Dewas district, about 70 km from Bhopal, which witnessed communal strife on Monday. No untoward incident occurred on Tuesday when curfew was relaxed for half an hour from 5.30 p.m. to 6 p.m. for the residents to buy essential commodities.


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The death toll in Monday’s clash is one Arjun while three other persons were seriously injured of which two are still not out of danger and are battling for life in Indore hospital. Unconfirmed reports of death of four persons in Monday’s clashes have been belied as those critically injured were earlier presumed to have succumbed to their injuries.

About 70-80 Muslims have been rounded up after the clashes while only 2-3 Hindus have been arrested, alleged Abdul Qadeer, whose tyre re-molding shop was among about half a dozen of houses and shops of Muslims which were reduced to ashes by arsonists following the death of 40-year-old Arjun.

Talking to this correspondent Abdul Qadeer on phone from Khategaon seemed to be in a state of fear and very much depressed. Speaking in a very hushed tone he said he has suffered a loss of about Rs. 2.5 lakh with the burning down of his shop by youths of his neighbourhood. The culprits whom he knows very much by names are Rakesh, Ravi and Biju have not been arrested by police so far who loiter in front of their houses but retreat their steps inside soon as they get wind of police coming down, he lamented.

One Akram suffered a loss of about Rs. 35,000-40,000/- whose chicken shop was gutted in the fire, he informed.

Abdul Qadeer confirmed the abduction and elopement of a number of Muslim girls by Hindu boys since last few months which was brewing tension between two communities. The police remaining a silent spectator was not doing enough to book the culprits and Muslims were seething in anger, he added. A month back 17-year-old daughter of a labourer Hamza Khan was abducted by a Hindu youth of the vicinity which triggered the Holi day bloody clashes, Abdul Qadeer revealed.

The district administration is keeping a tight vigil over the situation in the township with heavy deployment of police force. ([email protected])

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