Saharanpur SSP, DM suspended

Shahira Naim

Tribune News Service

Lucknow, May 24

Saharanpur remained edgy today with three more persons from lower castes injured in attacks. Taking a stern view of the continuing caste clashes, the Yogi Adityanath government suspended Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Subhash Chand Dubey and District Magistrate NP Singh while transferring Divisional Commissioner Mahendra Prasad Agarwal and Deputy Inspector General (DIG) KS Emmanuel.

Muzaffarnagar SSP Bablu Kumar, camping in Saharanpur since yesterday, has been named Saharanpur SSP. A special plane carried former Additional Chief Electoral Officer Pramod Kumar Pandey to Saharanpur to take charge as DM. Earlier in the day, Uttar Pradesh DGP Sulkhan Singh met the CM and briefed him on the arrest of 25 Thakurs —14 hailing from Chandpur village and 11 from Ambehata Chand.

Sources said Nitin Kumar Prajapati of Gadehwa village and Yashpal Prajapati of Badgaon were attacked while they were on their way to a brick-kiln early this morning. Critically injured, they were hospitalised.

Later in the afternoon, miscreants shot at motorcycle-borne Pradeep of Asanwali village. Dalits were attacked on Tuesday soon after BSP chief Mayawati left Shabbirpur village after addressing a huge rally there.The first casualty was Ashish of Sarsawan village. A group of 15 persons returning from Mayawati’s rally in Shabbirpur were attacked too.

Security beefed up

A spokesperson in the DGP’s office said besides the district police, six companies of the PAC, four of the RAF, five SP-level officers, seven Additional SP-level officers and 15 Deputy SP-level officers had been posted in Saharanpur. Secretary (Home) Maniprasad Mishra, ADG (Law and Order) Aditya Mishra, IG (STF) Amitabh Yash and DIG (Security) Vijay Bhushan were camping in the town too.

Mobile internet and messaging services were also suspended in the district, with officials saying the decision was taken to maintain peace and ensure law and order.

Oppn lashes out

While the CPM accused the government of backing “perpetrators of the caste violence,” SP’s Ram Gopal Yadav said the BJP was trying to divide people on caste identities.

“Having vitiated the atmosphere to gain political and electoral victory, the casteist, mischievous and criminal elements in the BJP and the RSS are now bent upon unleashing caste violence,” the BSP said.

The Congress, demanding a special trial and time-bound justice, said: “Some people believe they can indulge in hooliganism, oppress Dalits and commit atrocities as they are confident the law will not be initiated against them as the CM will protect them.”