Bhopal: A 25-year-old man was killed and at least 53 people were injured in a clash between tribal and Muslim communities in the Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh on Friday night, police said. Police said the district administration has invoked prohibitory orders under Section 144 of CrPC in the area. So far, 13 people, all Muslims, have been arrested after an FIR was registered against 16, police said.
The clash erupted between two groups over a Muslim man riding a two-wheeler at high speed. “A local resident Javed Mansuri, along with his sister, was riding through a place where a few tribals were playing Holi on Friday afternoon,” said Deepika Suri, IGP, Raisen. “Some members of the tribal community abused Mansuri and threatened them for riding the bike at a high speed.
Later, Mansuri returned with 6 others and beat up a few tribals. At 8 pm, at least 500 people from the tribal community gathered in the village and clashes erupted between the two communities,” the officer added. In the clashes, a tribal youth, identified as Raju Adiwasi, (25) was shot dead while two others were seriously injured and a man lost his vision due to an eye injury, the IG said.
“As of now, the case has been registered against the Muslim community only but we have received a complaint from the Muslim community,” said the IG. A local resident, however, refuted the allegations. “The tribal men were in an intoxicated state while celebrating Holi and tried to put colour on Javed Mansuri forcefully. This led to the clashes,” the resident told reports, requesting anonymity. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan visited the injured in the hospital and announced a compensation of Rs 5 lakh for the family of the deceased, Rs 2 lakh each for those who are seriously injured and Rs 50,000 for others with injuries.