Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who has already called upon citizens to assist the police in ensuring peace and law and order, presided over an emergency meeting on Monday night to take stock of the situation in Nagpur.
He discussed the developments with Nagpur district guardian minister and revenue minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule and top police officials.
The Chief Minister talked about the ground reality and directed the police to act immediately to establish peace. He also reiterated his request to the people not to take the law into their hands.
"If anyone is caught causing trouble, pelted stones at the police, or attempts to derail peace, immediate action will be taken against them," Fadnavis cautioned.
Deputy Commissioner of Police Niketan Kadam was one of the police officers who were injured during the violence. Kadam got hurt on his hand after allegedly being attacked by an axe-wielding mob.
Police sources reported that the mob had committed arson and stone throwing in Nagpur's Mahal area, also burning a number of vehicles. Officials have been concerned about the extent of the monetary damage caused by the violence.
Nagpur Police personnel in large numbers were sent to the location to break up the crowd. In spite of the commotion, policemen were able to restore order, and a curfew was later placed over the locality.
Following the violence, the police have been rounding up anti-social elements, with about 30 individuals already in custody. The authorities assured the public that the situation in Nagpur was now in hand and asked citizens not to believe rumors, urging them to continue cooperating.
The opposition and ruling parties alike have come together to call for peace and warn against the trap of misinformation. The opposition has, however, called for a complete inquiry into the stone peltings, arson, and violent clashes.
BJP MLA Praveen Satke indicated that outsiders could have been responsible for the vandalism. He stated, "There was a protest in the morning, but the police acted. Stones were pelted at night in the Mahal area and other places, and cars were burnt. Fire brigade staff were attacked. Outsiders were the ones who set the houses of common people ablaze and carried out large-scale stone pelting."
He added, "The situation is now under control. Both sides' people went out to the streets and there was violence. The Chief Minister must act at once against those involved. I will personally go to Nagpur to evaluate the situation."
NCP-SP leader in Pune Prashant Jagtap referred to the Nagpur incident as unfortunate and lamented the political implications that might arise from it. "Do the state desire peace or riots? As new businesses are on the rise, there was a good mood starting to develop. Citizens are now being diverted from immediate concerns such as inflation. In Nagpur, things need to be kept under control, or common voters might hit the streets. With the local elections round the corner, we need to ask ourselves if this agitation is being deliberately instigated," Jagtap cautioned.
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