Anti-encroachment drive: Mathura SP among 14 killed in clashes
MATHURA: A superintendent of police (SP), a sub-inspector and 12 protesters were killed and over 100 people injured in clashes during a drive to evict illegal occupants of a park in Mathura district on Thursday evening.
SP (City) Mathura Mukul Dwivedi and Farah police station officer Santosh Yadav were killed when activists of Swadheen Bharat Subhash Sena (SBSS) opened fire at the police party that attempted to evict them from Jawahar Park late on Thursday evening.
According to eyewitnesses, senior district officials, accompanied by a large number of policemen, reached the spot at around 4.30pm, hours after the Allahabad high court rejected SBSS’s petition seeking continuation of the dharna and attempted to evict the 3000 odd encroachers. In retaliation, the encroachers allegedly opened fire at the police party and both Santosh and Dwivedi sustained bullet injuries on their heads.
While Santosh was declared brought dead, Dwivedi’s condition was critical when he was admitted to the hospital. Dwivedi later succumbed to his injuries.
“Two police personnel and 12 encroachers were killed in Thursday’s clashes,” ADG (Law and Order) Daljeet Singh Chaudhary told reporters on Friday morning.
“Country-made guns, rifles, pistols and cartridges have been recovered from the spot. A search operation is under way,” Chaudhary said. Over 200 people have been detained for questioning.
UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav has ordered a probe into the incident. The CM has also instructed principal secretary, home and the DGP to personally visit Mathura at the earliest and take stock of the situation.
How the clash unfolded
Eyewitnesses claimed that trouble started when the police party attempted to enter the Jawahar Park premises by breaking its periphery wall. Sensing trouble, the encroachers resorted to “unprovoked” firing, taking the police party by surprise.
Subsequently, the police also fired rubber bullets and tear gas shells and resorted to a cane charge to disperse the violent encroachers, which included women and children also. About 100 SBSS activists have been admitted to local hospitals with various injuries.
The SBSS activists have been illegally occupying the public park for the last two and half years and various attempts by the administration to evict them had proved futile. In fact the, high court had last year directed the administration to take all necessary steps and precautions to ensure that the public park is not encroached upon. On April 15, the administration had given a 48-hour ultimatum to the encroachers but it lapsed too without any action being initiated.
While no one from the Sena was available for comment, the Facebook page of Swadheen Bharat Movement states, “We are true followers of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and we want to find out all the information and the certified documents from all governing bodies, including judiciary, legislative and executive bodies of the nation. We demand all records relating to “Ruler of the Nation”, law and order and also the document of citizenship (which shows how we are the citizen of the nation) to be made public”.
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