Pune village erupts in communal violence over WhatsApp post; 18 held so far
Communal violence was witnessed after an irate mob vandalised properties and indulged in arson in Yavat village of Maharashtra‘s Pune district on Friday afternoon (August 1) over an objectionable WhatsApp status allegedly posted by a daily wage labourer from a different community, police said.
The WhatsApp post claimed a Hindu priest had committed rape. It became instantly viral, deeply offending religious sentiments.
A rally was held in protest against the social media post, which soon turned violent.
Amid chants of ‘Jai Shri Ram‘, a bakery owned by a Hindu man was set on fire after rumours spread that it was run by the Muslim community.
Swapnil Adinath Kadam’s bakery was vandalised and burnt by miscreants. He told reporters that his shop was targeted solely because his employees were minorities. “Some of my workers are Muslims from Uttar Pradesh. News spread that my bakery is owned by them, which is untrue,” Kadam told reporters.
“Just because I employed some Muslims doesn’t give anyone the right to attack. They were wrongly blamed. My bakery was targeted just based on assumptions,” he said.
Police resorted to lathi charge and fired teargas shells to bring the situation under control. Prohibitory orders were issued to further avoid such incidents.
Yavat recently was witness to another communal tension after a desecration of a statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
18 arrested so far; 5 FIRs filed
On Saturday, August 2, police said that 18 people were arrested, including the man whose WhatsApp status fuelled the communal tension. Over 500 individuals have also been booked in connection with the violence.
A local court sent 15 of them to police custody for four days, Pune police said.
No planned consipiracy, says police
Talking to reporters, Pune Superintendent of Police (SP) Sandeep Singh Gill said the preliminary probe does not point to any planned conspiracy, and conclusions cannot be drawn until the inquiry is over.
“Till Saturday afternoon, police have registered five FIRs in connection with the incident,” he said, adding that the person whose objectionable post triggered the violence has resided in the village for years.
Additional SP Ganesh Biradar said the social media platforms were being monitored. “We are also using drones in villages to keep an eye,” he said.
(With PTI inputs)