Tension lingers in Sihora, 49 held, drones and barricades deployed

Jabalpur: Less than 24 hours after two groups clashed over the alleged vandalism of a temple grill in Jabalpur's Sihora, tension continued to grip Ground Zero prompting the administration to turn the area into a virtual police cantonment. Heavy police deployment was made across sensitive pockets, with drones being used to monitor rooftops and movement in the locality. As a precautionary measure, markets remained closed and police prevented people from assembling unnecessarily.Wary of a fresh spiral of violence, police prevented people from assembling unnecessarily, intensified foot patrols, and erected barricades at key junctions. Drone surveillance was used to keep a close watch on rooftops and sensitive lanes, especially in view of Friday prayers. The administration remained on high alert throughout the day.The flare-up was reported near Azad Chowk, where a Durga temple and a mosque are located opposite each other. Police said four separate FIRs were registered in connection with the violence, including cases pertaining to vandalism and stone-pelting at the Durga temple, damage to the mosque, forcible entry into a woman's house, and violence during a protest rally. Overall, 49 people have, so far, been arrested in connection with the clashes.According to police, a grill at the shrine was allegedly found damaged during Durga aarti on Thursday night, triggering allegations of vandalism. Soon, two groups got embroiled in a violent face-off during which shops and vehicles parked on roads were damaged. The police had to resort to baton-charge and fire eight to ten rounds of tear gas shells to bring the situation under control.Meanwhile, local right-wing outfits staged protests on Friday, taking out rallies and submitting memorandums demanding strict action. Responding to violence, minister Vishwas Kailash Sarang, on Friday, said Madhya Pradesh is a peaceful state and no individual or group should be allowed to take the law into their own hands. He said how stones were allegedly gathered at the mosque was a matter of investigation.Sihora police station in-charge Vipin Bihari Singh said some youths were taken into custody in connection with the flare-up, while CCTV footage was being scanned to identify those involved in the violence.Officials said the situation was under control but warned that security deployment will remain as for the next few days to prevent any retaliation.