38 held for rioting at Sewri

Thirty-eight people were arrested on Wednesday, after a fight broke out between members of two communities near Sewri junction late Tuesday night.

Thirty-eight people were arrested on Wednesday, after a fight broke out between members of two communities near Sewri junction late Tuesday night.

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Police had to use lathis to control the crowd and senior police officers, including Mumbai police commissioner Arup Patnaik and joint commissioner of police (law and order) Rajnish Seth, camped in the area till 2 am.

According to locals, several shops in the Wadala area remained shut till Wednesday evening, and the area had heavy police deployment to prevent any further clashes.

The fight started after four youngsters brought down a banner.

A local resident, requesting anonymity as he feared for his safety, said, “Four boys belonging to a particular community, removed a banner carrying festival wishes put up by members of another community.”

The four youngsters were thrashed by one faction on Sunday night. Friends and family members of the four boys then came to avenge the thrashing, but the situation was controlled after a police team intervened in time.

Since then, Mohalla committee meetings were being held to restore normalcy in the area. But, on Tuesday night, the two factions confronted each other and entered into a minor skirmish, RAK Marg police officials said.

The situation turned violent after the two factions started pelting police officials with stones.

“We had to use lathis after the locals in the area attacked the policemen who had gone to pacify them. So far we have arrested 38 persons from both communities on charges of rioting,” said additional commissioner of police (central region) Vineet Agarwal.