MP Govt Bulldozed 45 Properties Including Houses And Shops Over Ram Navami Violence, 84 Arrested: Khargone Violence

A day after violence occurred in Madhya Pradesh’s Khargone on the occasion of Ram Navami, the MP govt initiated strict action against the alleged rioters. Over 45 “illegal” properties including houses and shops were bulldozed during the Monday demolition drive.

84 persons have been arrested in connection with the violence. The city remained under curfew on Monday.

Pawan Sharma, Divisional Commissioner, Indore said, “Not all, but some of the accused involved in the communal riots own these properties, they were encroaching on public land and action has been taken based on land revenue records.”

When asked about waiting for a court’s order before demolishing the properties which majorly belong to the minority community, Mr. Sharma stated, “if an illegal structure is there, we can take action under relevant sections. The properties happen to belong to the accused in the communal riots case.”

“The main idea behind the move is to instill fear of financial losses among the accused,” he added.

“Rioters will not be spared, there is no place for rioters in Madhya Pradesh. They have been identified and strictest action will be taken against them. Action will not only be limited to arrests, the damages will be recovered from the private or public property of the rioters,” Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan said.

Reportedly, violence erupted after stones were hurled at a religious procession when it was passing through a mosque.

There were allegations that the procession did not have the police permission and was shouting provocative slogans while passing through the mosque.

Sumer Singh Mujalda, Additional District Magistrate of Khargone said, “It is a traditional route for Ram Navami celebrations and the members had police permission. The procession was suspended for the past two years due to COVID-19. The situation is under control now.”

“Jis ghar se pathar aaye hain, us ghar ko hi patharon kaa dher banaenge (We will turn the houses from where the stones were pelted to a heap of rubble),” said Home Minister Narottam Mishra.

On Ram Navami, similar incidents of violence were reported from other states including Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Karnataka and Gujarat.

The action has also received huge backlash where people were questioning the role of the judiciary in the whole scenario.

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