Miscreants try to set mosque afire near Kasganj, probe ordered

Violence erupted in Kasganj during a ‘Tiranga Yatra’ taken out by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad on Republic Day.

Miscreants attempted to set a mosque afire in Ganjdundwara on Monday morning, ten days after communal violence erupted in nearby Kasganj city.

Police have arrested over 125 people for the clashes so far, and the case is being probed by a special investigation team formed by the state government.(PTI File Photo)

“The incident occurred around 4.30 am. Police personnel from a local station and a reserve battalion were sent to the spot. Although nobody was injured in the blaze, the entrance of the mosque was damaged,” said Kasganj district magistrate RP Singh.

Local residents helped police personnel douse the fire. A complaint has been registered against unidentified people.

Kasganj superintendent of police Piyush Srivastav said efforts were on to bring the culprits to justice. “We will not tolerate such incidents. We have launched a hunt for the people involved, and they will soon be put behind bars.”

Harisharan Gautam and Nagendra Kumar – two constables deployed with the Cobra Bike squad – were suspended for negligence, said Srivastava.

Kasganj witnessed communal clashes on Republic Day, after a youth was shot during a ‘Tiranga Yatra’ taken out by Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad activists. Several properties were set afire in the days that followed, spurring the district administration to issue prohibitory orders.

An independent fact-finding team comprising retired state inspector general SR Darapuri, senior advocate Assad Hayat Khan, journalist Amit Sengupta and prominent social activists has blamed the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and other right-wing groups for the violence. The team had visited Kasganj under the ‘United Against Hate’ banner on February 2.

The attempt to burn down the mosque comes after five days of relative peace in the district. Police have so far arrested over 125 people for the clashes, and the case is being probed by a special investigation team formed by the state government.

Normalcy has returned to Kasganj, with most schools and business establishments across the city opening on Monday.