Govt to slap NSA on Bareilly rioters

LUCKNOW: The state government on Wednesday announced that the National Security Act (NSA) will be slapped on people who instigated and helped in adding to the riots in Bareilly. Meanwhile, curfew was lifted from Izzatnagar while it was relaxed for two to four hours in other parts of Bareilly. In what is being described as an isolated incident originating from old rivalry one person was shot dead on Wednesday in Jogi Newada locality taking the death toll since Sunday night to three.
Police however said it was yet to be established if the latest causality was linked to the communal clashes or an isolated incident of old enmity, as suspected by the victim's family. District Magistrate (DM) Bareilly Manish Chauhan said, initial investigations suggests that it was result of election related rivalry rather than the riots but we are still investigating the case from all possible dimensions. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Bareilly Sanjiv Gupta said Imran was shot dead and one person has been arrested in connection with the murder.
ADG law and order and crime Jagmohan Yadav said so far 370 persons have been arrested in connection with the riots that broke out on Sunday night leading to the death of a local youth. "Senior officials are screening the footage collected from media and private sources in order to identify the mischief mongers who contributed in escalating the violence during the riots," ADG said.
"We have been carefully screening the evidence that can help in identifying those who were active during the violence to add to the damage and threat to human life during the riots. The main players will be booked under NSA," Yadav told TOI.
Curfew was clamped in several parts of Bareilly after violent clashes erupted between two communities following a dispute over playing of devotional music on Sunday. What started as a clash between two groups soon turned into riots as the two communities clashed and torched houses and shops belonging to each other.
One person was killed during the violence while another youth, injured on Sunday night, succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday night. Police quoting the family members of the second deceased said he could have been killed by his rivals during the clashes to cover the incident as a result of riot instead of a cold blooded murder. Police said investigations were underway into the death of second victim.
Meanwhile, locals came out in large numbers when curfew was lifted. People were seen buying domestic utilities and ration as district administration arranged for vegetable vendors to put up stalls in the curfew bound areas.
During the curfew relaxation, security agencies stepped up patrolling in the areas. Senior officers were hopeful that curfew might be lifted from different parts of the city in phases within the next 48 to 72 hours.