By IANS
Mumbai : A Buddhist monk was found dead in mysterious circumstances here Sunday, and in the aftermath of violence by his followers the police have filed a case of murder against a builder and some office-bearers of a Buddhist organisation.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Niket Kaushik said that a close colleague of the monk filed the first information report and the case is being investigated.
When news spread in the afternoon that the monk, Buddhabhanti Badant Sanghraj Thairo, had committed suicide by hanging himself in his tenement at Deonar in northeast Mumbai, Buddhists in the neighbourhood took to the streets.
Suspecting foul play, they threw stones at vehicles and buildings in the vicinity and torched at least three vehicles.
Even as police reinforcements were rushed to control the violence, the angry crowds continued to swell.
They termed Thairo’s death as murder, allegedly committed by a local builder in connivance with some office-bearers of the Buddha Vihar Samiti, and demanded police action against them.
Deonar and its surrounding suburbs like Chembur and Ghatkopar have a huge Dalit population.
Kaushik told IANS that although the situation was brought under control by evening, the police were maintaining a close vigil on the developments there.