The Hindu : Stabbing incidents in Ahmedabad, Baroda

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Mar 31, 2002

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Stabbing incidents in Ahmedabad, Baroda

By Manas Dasgupta

AHMEDABAD MARCH 30. Police opened fire in Kadi and Adas towns and a couple of stabbings were reported from Ahmedabad and Baroda cities as most other parts of riot-torn Gujarat by and large remained peaceful today.

Tension gripped the pilgrim centre of Somnath where a cow was found dead with acid-burn injuries. A complaint has been lodged with the Veraval police and the local Vishwa Hindu Parishad leaders have launched a dharna near the temple demanding immediate action.

The Saurashtra region by and large had remained trouble-free barring stray incidents in Morvi and a few other towns earlier. But the Somnath incident is causing concern and additional police forces have been rushed to the town. An incident at Bapunagar in Ahmedabad caused disturbances after a cow was injured. But later it was found that the cow was injured when it tried to cross a barbed wire.

An indefinite curfew was clamped on Kadi town in Mehsana district following arson, stone-throwing and group clashes. Police, however, claimed no one was injured in the firing resorted to disperse the clashing mobs.

Police also opened fire on the outskirts of Adas, near Anand, to disperse an armed mob, which was believed to be coming to attack the town. Police arrested 32 persons and recovered some revolvers, swords, knives, petrol bombs and other weapons. Police said that when challenged, the mob had fired at the police but no one was injured.

In Ahmedabad, a 38-year-old person was stabbed in the Madhavpura locality and was admitted to hospital. Curfew was totally withdrawn from the 10 police station areas where it was imposed on Friday as a precautionary measure in view of the Holi festival. In the six other police station areas where curfew was imposed earlier this week following disturbances, it would be relaxed for nine hours from 6 a.m. Barring the Madhavpura stabbing, no other untoward incident was reported from the city during the eight-hour curfew relaxation today. The main market areas in the city reopened today after about 10 days due to the disturbances.

In Baroda, where one person was stabbed and a shop was set afire in Raopura locality, curfew was relaxed in the five police station areas for four hours. While an indefinite curfew remained in force in Amod, Modasa and Prantij towns, curfew was relaxed in phases in Anand, Nadiad, Broach, Himmatnagar, Visnagar towns and Sarkhej on the outskirts of Ahmedabad.

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