By Abdul Hameed, TwoCircles.net,
Mumbai: As soon as curfew was relaxed for day hours for the next two days in the riots-hit Pusad people from neighboring areas besides a delegation of Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind visited the victims with relief materials and comforted them.
‘People from Nanded, Degras and Akola areas gave food packets comprising tea leaves, sugar and oil to the victims during 10 am to 6 pm; when curfew was temporarily relaxed. A delegation of Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind (Maharashtra) comprising Hafiz Nadeem, Maulana Shafeeq, Maulana Abdul Jabbar and Maulana Shakeel among others in the leadership of Maulana Mahmood Madani visited Pusad and comforted the affected people,’ told Sabiruz Zaman, secretary general of Jamiat Ulama-I-Hind (Akola) on phone.
No unpleasant accident was reported yesterday except the one when during the peace meeting between police and elders of both the communities, Muslims surrounded a policeman allegedly guilty of misbehaving them and only after the assurance from SP that he would be punished they let him go.
Late in Tuesday night, some communal elements from Hanuman Mandir area attacked Muslims in Khateeb Ward of Pusad causing security officers rushing to the area. The rioters could not do any damage. ‘The 20-25 SRP and two local police officers then intruded some Muslims’ houses, damaged the articles over there, misbehaved with females and stole the valuables,’ Sabiruz Zaman said the locals told so to the delegation. He also said, ‘The officers went away with jewelries of two girls who were to be married,’ adding that this is the first incident of police behaving like this in the area.
However, later it was confirmed that the looters were the rioters in the guise of police. FIR has been lodged against three rioter policemen and they have been arrested.
The communal clash erupted in Pusad on Friday when the controversial CD ‘Mandir Waheen Banayen Ge’ (We will build the temple at that place.) was being played. So far four persons have been killed in the riots and scores injured. The police are still conducting arrests with allegedly 90% of them being Muslims.