Centre asks states to be vigilant on communal flare ups

Against the backdrop of communal violence in Muzaffarnagar in UP, Centre has asked seven states to be extra vigilant and effectively deal with petty skirmishes to avert any communal flare-up.

Against the backdrop of communal violence in Muzaffarnagar in UP, Centre has asked seven states to be extra vigilant and effectively deal with petty skirmishes to avert any communal flare-up.

This was conveyed by the home ministry to governments of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Haryana and Jammu and Kashmir -- all of whom have witnessed communal violence in recent past.

"We have conveyed to the states to take every small incident seriously and control it immediately with utmost care. We have asked the state governments to convey this message down the line to the police station level," a senior government officer said.

The violence in Muzaffarnagar, which has claimed 31 lives, was started initially with an incident of eve teasing.

Communal violence was reported last month from Nawada in Bihar where two people lost their lives while 22 others were injured. This incident was started over serving non-vegetarian dish in a roadside eatery.

Some other communal violence, reported from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka and Jammu and Kashmir, also started with trivial incidents.

According to official figures, the country saw 451 incidents of communal violence till August 31 this year, above the number of 410 in 2012.