MP Khargone violence: 64 FIRs, 175 people held so far; curfew relaxed for 9 hours

Police have so far arrested 175 people in connection with the violence in Khargone city of Madhya Pradesh during Ram Navami celebration earlier this month, an official said on Sunday. Local administration relaxed the curfew in Khargone for nine hours – from 8 am to 5 pm – for the second day in a row on Sunday.

But, night curfew will continue, in-charge Superintendent of Police Rohit Kashwani said, adding that no untoward incident was reported during the curfew relaxation on Saturday.

So far, 64 FIRs have been registered in connection with the violence in Khargone city on April 10, and 175 people have been arrested, Kashwani told reporters on Saturday. He said that Mohsin aka Waseem, who was arrested in connection with the firing at Khargone Superintendent of Police Siddharth Choudhary, was presented before a local court on Saturday and sent in three-day police remand. The accused is being questioned and further details are being collected, the police official said. Search for the other accused is underway in areas near Khargone and other places on the basis of technical evidence, he added. Choudhary is currently on leave as he is undergoing treatment after sustaining a bullet injury in his leg.

Communal clashes had erupted in Khargone city during the Ram Navami celebration on April 10, during which shops and houses were damaged, vehicles torched and stones hurled.

Curfew was clamped in the city after the violence. But since April 14, the local administration has been relaxing the curfew for some hours.

As per the district administration’s order, the curfew relaxation will not be applicable to local agricultural market, petrol pumps and for the sale of kerosene from Public Distribution System (PDS) shops.

During the curfew relaxation period, shops selling milk, vegetables, medicines, and barber’s shops among others, are allowed to remain open, but religious places have been asked to be kept shut.