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10 held as spat during cricket match escalates
Video footage has helped identify and apprehend 10 people who were involved in the stone-pelting and use of weapons, said Eda Martin, Belagavi Police commissioner
At least eight people were injured during a clash that erupted on Thursday night in Belagavi’s Shahpur area after a minor altercation between two teams who had been playing cricket, a top police officer said on Friday, adding that 10 people have been detained.
Police commissioner Eda Martin said that the altercation started after the losing team exchanged words with the winning team after a cricket match played on the Maratha Mandir School ground. He further said that the initial altercation on the field escalated into a larger conflict by 8 pm, involving parents and local youths who came armed with swords, knives, and stones.
During the confrontation, more than a dozen houses were damaged in Alvan Galli, forcing commercial establishments to pull down their shutters, he said.
The commissioner said: “Video footage has helped us identify and apprehend 10 people who were involved in the stone-pelting and use of weapons. We have deployed three KSRP platoons and an additional 50 police personnel to manage the situation, with three police inspectors patrolling the area.”
He said that the violence stopped when a female police officer and her constable partner, who were patrolling in the area, intervened as the situation threatened to spiral further. Seeing the officers, the attackers fled while throwing away their weapons, said the officer.
All injured individuals were taken to Belagavi Institute of Medical Sciences (BIMS) hospital for treatment of their injuries.
The commissioner said that additional police forces have been stationed at the hospital to ensure the safety of the injured.
Two formal complaints have been registered with the Shahapur police, and first information reports (FIR) have been filed against 10 people identified from CCTV footage.
Martin said that the charges include unlawful assembly (under IPC section 143), rioting (147), rioting armed with a deadly weapon (148), voluntarily causing hurt (323), voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means (324), attempt to murder (307), assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty (354), intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace (504), criminal intimidation (506), promoting enmity between different groups (153A), and every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object (149).
“We are continuing to arrest all those identified in the footage,” he emphasised, urging the public to remain calm and not fall prey to rumours.
The area’s BJP corporator, Jayant Jadhav, accused the police of being biased and alleged that only members of his community were being detained.
Rejecting these claims, the commissioner asserted that arrests were made based on evidence from CCTV footage and that individuals from both communities were being detained.
“We do not discriminate based on religion, caste, or creed. Our actions are based solely on the evidence and the need to maintain public order,” Martin added.
