22 arrested after Holi procession clash in Jharkhand
Twenty-two people have been arrested for allegedly being involved in a clash during a Holi procession in Jharkhand's Giridih district, the police said on Saturday.
Several people were injured, and many shops and vehicles torched after the clash broke out between two groups during the procession on Friday in the Ghorthamba locality.
“Twenty-two people have been arrested from both sides in connection to the case,” Khorimahua sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Rajendra Prasad said.
He said four makeshift shops, five motorcycles and two four-wheelers were torched during the clash.
Earlier, Giridih SP Bimal Kumar had said that a manhunt was launched to nab those involved in the clash.
“The situation is completely under control. The persons involved in the incident are being identified, and a search is on to nab them. Stern action will be taken against them,” he said. Police personnel in large numbers have also been deployed to maintain peace in the area, he said.
Jharkhand BJP chief and Leader of Opposition in the assembly Babulal Marandi blamed the JMM-led government for the incident.
“The tragic incident of stone pelting and arson on a Holi procession in Ghorthamba of Giridih is the result of politics of appeasement of the Hemant Soren government,” he alleged in a post on X.
