Stones, lathis, and tear gas shells during communal clash on Eid  

Communal clash on Eid – Hours before Eid, a ruckus broke out in Jodhpur between two communities of people which resulted in heavy stone pelting from both sides.

The violence that took place past midnight resulted in tear-gas shells, and lathis and left 5 policemen heavily injured in communal clash on Eid.

 Why did the communal clash on Eid break out? 

The tensions were triggered on Monday night when the members of the two groups clashed over the installation of religious flags in certain parts of the city.

The associates of the minority community were allegedly reported to be raising Eid flags at Jalori gate, a commercial area in the heart of the city, and installing them alongside the statue of freedom fighter Balmukund Bissa.  

The confrontation was a result of the other community casting blame on a missing saffron flag which they had placed at the same spot ahead of Parshuram Jayanti.

According to the officials, this issue snowballed into stone-pelting and violent clashes between the two groups. Loudspeakers from various places across the area were also uprooted which further added fuel to the fire.  

How was the ruckus controlled? 

Police had to be rushed to the spot to prevent the situation from escalating any further. Tear gas shells and lathis were used to disperse the mob. 

Several police vehicles have been vandalized and countless people from both sides have suffered injuries.  A bike was also torched to ruins outside the house of BJP MLA Suryakanta Vyas. 

Slogans against the CM were also raised all across the city. According to Jodhpur Police Commissioner, Navjyoti Gogoi, the conditions in the area are now under control but there is a heavy police deployment all across the city.  

Actions are taken by the Chief Minister 

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Tuesday called an urgent high-level meeting with the Minister of State for Home Rajendra Yadav, Additional Chief Secretary Home Abhay Kumar, minister in-charge for Jodhpur Subhash Garg, DGP Hawa Singh, and other important officials as the popular tourist destination remained tense in the aftermath of the clashes. 

The CM requested the people to maintain peace and harmony, ensuring that all anti-social elements would be strictly dealt with.  

The administration of the city has been instructed to corroborate the maintenance of order. In a statement made to ANI Gehlot stated that the occurrences are unfortunate as the people of all the communities have always been united.

He also urged the people to build an atmosphere of peace and brotherhood. 

The Chief Minister also urged all the political parties to stay united and made an appeal to the leaders of all political parties reminding them of their duty of being public representatives, responsible for the maintenance of peace in the area.    

The aftermath of the incident 

A curfew has been imposed in the city in areas under the jurisdiction of 10 police stations including Udai Mandir, Nagori Gate, Khanda Phalsa, Pratap Nagar, Soor Sagar, Dev Nagar, and Sardarpura till midnight on May 4.

The police have asserted the conduction of flag marches to ensure peace and harmony amongst the people.  

All internet services in the district have been temporarily suspended as a precautionary measure in light of the clashes.

As per the orders of the Jodhpur Divisional Commissioner all internet services in Jodhpur will be suspended until further notice.

All social media services such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, Twitter, and all others (except for voice calls) have been suspended since May 3 from 1 pm and will remain so until further orders. 

Edited by – Vanshika Sahu

Published by – Mohd Faizan