Saharanpur Clashes 'Well-Planned Conspiracy': Yogi Adityanath Government

The Uttar Pradesh government had on Wednesday blamed Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati's visit this week to Shabbirpur, a village where clashes between Dalits and Thakurs or Rajputs earlier this month led to the death of a Dalit man. On Thursday, the state government said Chandrashekhar Azad of a local Dalit outfit Bhim Sena would be arrested soon.

UP Home Secretary Mani Parsad Mishra said clashes had been reported off and on in Saharanpur over the past few years. But he conceded that the incidents had not attained the magnitude witnessed over the last month, beginning from April 20. This is when a group backed by the ruling party's lawmaker Raghav Lakhanpal tried to browbeat the police into allowing a procession to mark Ambedkar Jayanti and announced the transfer of then district police chief Love Kumar.

"Since April 20 violence, the intensity of such incidents has been on a rise and some where it has been felt that there was something lacking in the police administration," Mr Mishra said, a day he suspended the district's police chief SC Dubey and collector NP Singh. Both had



been appointed by the BJP government less than a month earlier.

With a new team in place, the home secretary expressed the situation was likely to become normal within 24 hours.

The home secretary's visit comes against the backdrop of criticism that the Yogi Adityanath government, which came to power on the plank of improving the law and order situation in the state in March, hadn't been able to deliver on this promise.

"Four companies (about 400 personnel) of the Rapid Action Force have been sent to Saharanpur... following a request of the Uttar Pradesh government," a PTI report said, quoting home ministry spokesperson Ashok Prasad.

The central forces were sent after an initial report to the home ministry detailed two deaths and injuries to 40 people in clashes. The first death took place on 5 May when 15 people were also injured. The second death took place on Tuesday when one person was shot and two others injured in clashes. In between, on May 9, about 12 police vehicles were set ablaze and 12 policemen injured.