One person was killed while trying to escape alleged violence during an anti-encroachment drive carried in Rajasthan’s Nagaur district on Sunday in which five persons were injured.
A police official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that district officials were removing encroachments by the Banjara community on a pasture land. “Bhopalgarh MLA Pukhraj Garg and Merta MLA Indira Devi from the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party reached the spot and asked the authorities to stop the drive saying that before demolishing the structures, the government should make alternative arrangements,” the official said. However, the residents of the area started pelting stones on the officials. Farooq, driver of the crane brought in for the encroachment drive, tried to escape the stone pelting and ran towards the road where he was run over by an unidentified vehicle, the official said.
Angry over Farooq’s death, his family and locals blocked a highway for hours. Yadav said the anti-encroachment drive was carried out on the Rajasthan high court’s order. “We had given the people living there a notice in advance. Some senior members of the community had already assured cooperation in the drive. But during the drive, some started protesting and in order to bring the situation under control mild force was used,” he said.