E-Paper
Locals claim outsiders responsible for June 10 Prayagraj violence
Many residents of Prayagraj’s Atala area have blamed outsiders for the riot and arson that rocked the area post Friday prayers on June 10 and claimed that they themselves tried to chase away the youths indulging in violence.
Many Atala residents have blamed outsiders for the riot and arson that rocked the area post Friday prayers on June 10 and claimed that they themselves tried to chase away the youths indulging in violence.
At present situation is returning back to normalcy at Atala and most of the shops have opened. However, some eateries are still to resume their business as their workers have not returned yet. Many traders fear police crackdown as kin of some of them have been named in the FIR lodged after the violence.
Security personnel are still deployed at Atala but their numbers have been reduced in the last few days.
Recalling the June 10 violence, Mohd Daud a local said he and others in the locality were alarmed when they saw assembly of youths who were from outside.
“As they started raising slogans, locals urged them to go back and disperse. However, all of them were strangers and did not pay heed to our warnings,” Daud claimed.
A trader Mohd Ansar said “We even pushed them back from the main crossing but they were determined to shout slogans and create a ruckus. Me and some others immediately closed our shops when the situation turned tense and started pushing back the youths. Some of them went back but a large number of them who were unknown to us refused to budge. Some of them scuffled with us.”
To note, Atala area had witnessed large scale violence on June 10 after Friday prayers following protests over insult to Prophet Mohammad by now removed BJP functionaries Nupur Sharma and Navin Jindal.
Group of youths in lanes on both sides of Shaukat Ali Road pelted stones and even hurled crude bombs.
“In the lane close to my house there were around 50 youths throwing bricks on cops. We asked them to go away but they refused. Some locals then assembled and chased them away with sticks,” said Gulsher, a local at Atala.
Corporator of Atala area Moinuddin Ansari said the youths who caused violence were outsiders.
“Me and my supporters tried to push them away and even caught some of them but we were outnumbered. One of the youths, who had covered his face with a cloth, even pointed a country made pistol at me. I immediately tried to catch his hand but he disappeared in the crowd,” he added.
