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Bareilly clash: ‘Over 50 rounds fired, sharp-edged weapons used in land dispute’
The cops added that the clash -- which took place due to a dispute over the possession of a highly fertile 2,500 bigha land on the Budaun-Bareilly border -- also injured at least 20 people.
LUCKNOW Over 50 rounds were fired from more than a dozen firearms and weapons like swords and other sharp-edged objects were used for nearly 45 minutes in the clash between the two groups that led to the death of three people in a Bareilly village on Wednesday evening, said police on Thursday. The cops added that the clash -- which took place due to a dispute over the possession of a highly fertile 2,500 bigha land on the Budaun-Bareilly border -- also injured at least 20 people.
The incident occurred at Govindpur of Katka Raman gram panchayat under Faridipur police station limits. The victims have been identified as -- Sardar Parmenda Singh and Sardar Devendra Singh, both of whom were part of Sardar Paramvir Singh group; and Gul Mohammed Golu from the group of Suresh Pal Singh Tomar, the former pradhan of adjoining Raipur Hansh village, according to police. Other men -- who sustained bullet or sword injuries -- are undergoing treatment at the district hospital.
Sharing further details, Bareilly’s additional superintendent of police (rural) Raj Kumar Agarwal said that only one FIR from the group of Sardar Paramvir Singh has been lodged so far. He said Sardar Paramvir Singh’s farmhouse manager Khajanchi Lal got an FIR filed against Suresh Pal Singh Tomar, who is a local history-sheeter and his 17 aides -- including Ajit Pal Singh, Vipin Singh, Vikas, Rinku, Gendan Lal, Pushp Lal, Suraj Pal, Sunil, Sanjay, Sudhir, Ajay, Rahul, Mukesh, Jagpal Singh, Ram Naresh, Subash Pathak, and Virendra Pathak. Besides, 15 other unidentified people are also mentioned in the FIR. The ASP added that the counter-complaint from the second group is still awaited.
The FIR against Suresh Pal Singh Tomar and his aides has been lodged under Indian Penal Code sections 147 (for rioting), 148 (for rioting armed with deadly weapons), 149 (for offence committed in prosecution of common objective), 307 (for attempt to murder), 326 (for voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapons), 302 (for murder), 435 ( for mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage to agricultural produce), 504 (for insult), and 120B (for criminal conspiracy).
He also said some of the named accused in the FIR are injured and are undergoing treatment at the district hospital. A heavy police force has been deployed at the hospital, at the farmhouse of Paramvir Singh, and at the house of former pradhan to prevent any untoward incident.
Another local cop informed that the clash was a fallout of “local supremacy”, which has been the reason for conflict between the two groups. While one group is led by Punjab resident Sardar Param Vir Singh, who has occupied over 2500 bigha of land and made a farmhouse there, the other one is fronted by local muscleman and history-sheeter Suresh Pal Singh Tomar. The cop added that multiple murders have taken place over the highly fertile land in the past as well. He said that the clash is actually between locals and Sikhs migrants, who had occupied the local land after purchasing several plots in the area.
