Cops look to connect dots behind violence

KOREGAON BHIMA: The Pune rural police said they do not know who started the stone pelting or who instigated the local villagers to indulge in violence that led to clashes leaving one person dead and three others on Monday.
They are investigating how trouble broke out in the otherwise peaceful villages of Koregaon Bhima, Vadhu and neighbouring areas.On Tuesday, the situation was tense and an uneasy calm prevailed in these villages.
State director general of police Satish Mathur, inspector general of police Vishwas Nangre–Patil and other senior police officers interacted with the villagers from Vadhu Budruk, Koregaon Bhima and Shikrapur on Tuesday.

Mathur appealed to the Vadhu villagers to maintain peace in the area. A strong police bandobast was deployed at Vadhu village, from where the trouble started. All shops and commercial establishments here were shut on Tuesday.
However, the police are still ascertaining how the stone pelting started on Monday and which group pelted stones first.
“We are investigating and have filed five cases, so far. More cases will be filed soon, including one of murder,” police inspector Ramesh Galande of Shikrapur police station said.
Police have booked members of both the groups under sections of rioting and vandalizing private and public property. In one case, police have also invoked provisions of SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act.
They said it is primarily believed that a group carrying saffron flags visited the parking area for the vehicles that arrived at Koregaon Bhima for the celebrations and a stone was hurled towards the parking area. Following this, a group from the parking area retaliated by pelting stones.
The police officers told TOI that a group of men from Pune city was visiting Vadhu village, located about five km from Koregaon Bhima, regularly for the past couple of weeks. They instigated the villagers following which the samadhi and a sign board near the samadhi (tomb) of Govind Gopal Mahar (Gaikwad) was ransacked by the villagers on December 29. Police booked 49 villagers, including gram panchayat members, for vandalism.
Police told TOI that the villagers on December 28, 2017 met and decided that they will not tolerate the interference of the group of men from Pune in their local activities.
Tension prevailed in the villages of Bhima Koregaon, Sanaswadi and other neighbouring villages on the Pune-Ahmednagar highway on Tuesday.
There was a strong presence of policemen from Pune rural police, State Reserve Police Force and Quick Response Teams. No untoward incident was reported on Tuesday, police said. Very few vehicles were on the road.
On Tuesday morning, police had diverted traffic heading towards Ahmednagar from Pune via Lonikand towards Chakan – Shikrapur road or towards Alandi after many burnt vehicles were still in the middle of the road.
Policemen at the memorial told TOI that there were few visitors to the site on Tuesday and by evening workers started taking down the paraphernalia.