2 killed in police firing in Jharkhand

Ranchi, August 29

Two people were killed and 24 were injured in protests and subsequent police firing in Jharkhand’s Ramgarh on Monday.

Among those injured in the incident were district officials and several policemen.

Villagers have been protesting the displacement a plant belonging to Inland Power at Gola would cause. The plant’s management had called them for talks on Monday.

Police claimed that the villagers went on a rampage, pelting stones at policemen, when talks failed, which prompted the police action. Seven policemen were injured in the stone-pelting police claim. 

"One group went for talks with Inland Power authorities and the second group was involved in ransacking. Villagers pelted stones at the police in which seven policemen were injured. The police retaliated by firing killing one villager. A probe has been ordered into the incident. Hazaribagh Commissioner and Deputy Inspector General of Police will probe the incident," Jharkhand police chief DK Pandey said.

Officials said one person was killed in the police firing and another died in the stampede that followed the firing. At least two dozen people were injured in the stampede, police said.

Villagers torched vehicles and blocked roads to protest the killing.

Inland Power is an arm of Inland World Logistics and its project involves installing two 63 MW coal-based thermal power plants near Gola.

The first phase of the 63-MW plant has already been commissioned and began generating power from May 2014. The second unit is scheduled to be commissioned by 2017. — Agencies