Bharatiya Janata Party MP Tejasvi Surya and other leaders were on Wednesday stopped from visiting Rajasthan’s Karauli, where communal clashes had broken out on April 2.
The Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, the party’s youth wing, had planned a “nyay yatra” or justice rally to meet the people who had sustained injuries in the violence.
Karauli Superintendent of Police Shailendra Singh Indoliya told Scroll.in that the police had anticipated that attempts would be made to enter the city and had kept a force ready on the Dausa-Karauli border.
Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure has been imposed in the city since April 2. The section prohibits the gathering of more than five people.
On April 2, communal clashes had broken out in a Muslim-dominated area of the city after a motorcycle rally passed through it, allegedly playing communally-charged songs, on Nav Samvatsar, the first day of the Hindu new year. In response, members of the other community had allegedly thrown stones at the rally.
The police had said that some people vandalised shops and vehicles in response to the stone-throwing. Thirty-five persons were injured in the violence.
On Wednesday, Surya, who is the chief of the youth wing, said that riots in Karauli suggested that there was “clear lawlessness” in the state.
“The deliberate attempt to disturb Ram Navami shobha yatra and the unwillingness of Congress government to act against the aggressors is deplorable,” he said in a tweet.
In another tweet, the BJP MP posted a picture announcing his visit to Karauli and asked people to join him.
Surya also challenged the Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government to stop the youth wing members from reaching Karauli.
Indoliya said that the youth wing members shouted slogans and tried to break barricades to enter Karauli.
Besides Surya, BJP MLA Satish Poonia and Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha President Himanshu Sharma were stopped from entering the violence-hit area, the police officer said.
“They were all moved into buses and have been dispersed under Section 129 of the CrPC [Code of Criminal Procedure],” the superintendent of police added.
Section 129 allows any officer in charge of a police station or any police officer, not below the rank of a sub-inspector, to command any unlawful assembly of five or more persons, likely to cause a disturbance of the public peace, to disperse.
Karauli Collector Rajendra Singh Sekhawat said that no rallies will be allowed in the city.
“We also said that we could let four to five people go to make their representation, as Section 144 had been imposed, but all efforts failed as they did not cooperate,” he added.
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