Security has been beefed up in the riot- hit Saharanpur town and in neighbouring areas in view of the festival of Id-ul-Fitr. Curfew was relaxed in all the six curfew-bound areas of Saharanpur on Monday and decision for relaxing curfew further would be taken by the district administration. Curfew was partially revoked in the new city area of Saharanpur between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. and between 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. in the old city area
IG (Law and Order) Amrendra Kumar Sengar told reporters in Lucknow that 49 companies of Provincial Armed Constabulary, 10 companies of Rapid Action Force (RAF) and 16 companies of Central Para Military Force (CPMF), including SSP, ITBP and CRPF have been deployed in Saharanpur and other communally-sensitive towns of Western Uttar Pradesh. He said six police station areas of Qutubsher, Mandi, Kotwali Nagar, Janakpuri, Kotwali Dehat and Civil Lines are under curfew. Stating that the situation was returning to normal, the IG said a tight vigil is being kept with the security personnel patrolling the riot hit areas of the town.
Locals and political parties have blamed the police for not taking timely action. Even Chief Secretary Alok Ranjan on Saturday expressed his disgust at the failure of intelligence agencies to warn the officials of the communal tension which was building up following a dispute between two communities over the possession of a plot on Gurdwara Road in Saharanpur. No action has yet been taken against the officials allegedly responsible for allowing the communal violence on Saturday to escalate.
Reports said that despite curfew, some shops were torched by anti-social elements late on Sunday night. Home Secretary Kamal Saxena said he had been informed by the Saharanpur District Magistrate that the shops burnt by miscreants were in isolated areas of the town. He said the DM informed that the situation was normal and a meeting with eminent citizens would be conducted.
Mr. Saxena said during curfew hours about 1,000 passengers were transported to the railway station by the district administration and powder milk was distributed in 24 localities in the curfew-bound areas. He added that 24 patients were shifted to different hospitals with the help of “108” ambulance service. Petrol pumps and the market area were flooded with people during the curfew-relaxation period.
Saharanpur Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Dinesh Chandra said: “A meeting will be held in the night to plan the strategy for Tuesday – the day of Id-ul-Fitr.”
