Mumbai: Caste violence rocked Maharashtra Tuesday as angry Dalit groups set vehicles ablaze, blocked railway tracks and pelted stones to vent their anger against the death of a 28-year-old man Monday near the site of bicentennial celebrations to mark the event the Bhima-Koregaon battle wherein in which forces of the East India Company defeated Peshwa’s army.
Angry mobs damaged at least 20 government buses near Chembur in Mumbai, blocked roads and brought the city’s harbour railway services to a halt for about 15 minutes, police said. Hundreds of protesters sat on the roads, forced shops to down shutters and smashed seven state-owned buses in Thane. Reports of violence and stone pelting were also reported from Pune and Solapur.
Hundreds of protesters gathered in Priyadarshini, Kurla, Sidharth Colony and Amar Mahal areas on the Eastern Express Highway, took out processions and raised slogans against the government and the administration.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has ordered a judicial probe into the death of Rahul Phatangale, who succumbed to his injuries Monday evening after being hit with stones when violence erupted near Bhima Koregaon, around 40 kilometres from Pune.
Four others were injured in the violence, while around 40 vehicles burnt or damaged.
The Mumbai police issued a statement appealing people not to believe in rumours and to verify facts with the police before posting anything on social media. On the other hand, the protestors have called for a Maharashtra bandh Wednesday.
PTI