Curfew relaxed in Mau, 500 rounded up

Mau (UP), Oct 19 (PTI) Curfew was relaxed for two hours in parts of riot-torn Mau today following improvement in the situation even as the administration decided to invoke NSA against perpetrators of communal flare-up that claimed nine lives. Two more police officials, an SHO and a constable, were placed under suspension in connection with violence that erupted last Thursday over Dussehra festivities. On Sunday, the Uttar Pradesh government suspended five top officials, including the Divisional Commmissioner, the DIG and the SSP, for their "failure" to control communal frenzy. The crackdown on anti-socials continued with police raiding several places. Over 500 people had been rounded up so far. Curfew was relaxed for two hours beginning 1000 hours in parts of Mau during which essential commodities were provided to residents, IGP A K Gupta told reporters here. He said in the first place curfew would be relaxed in in areas where no violence had taken place. The IGP said NSA would be invoked against perpetrators of communal strife, adding a Special Task Force had begun identifying real culprits behind the frenzy. He said two teams had been formed for distribution of relief material to people in curfew-bound localities. The situation in neighbouring Ballia, Ghazipur, Deoria and Azamgarh, which also witnessed communal violence in some pockets, was peaceful with no reports of any untoward incident since last evening.

The IGP said the SHO and the constable were suspended for failing to control violence while four cops were given out of turn promotion for showing exemplary courage during the clashes. He said to prevent recurrence of communal violence, more police stations and outposts would be set up in Azamgarh district. Principal Secretary (Home) Alok Sinha told reporters in Lucknow that law would take its own course with regard to registration of FIRs against Independent legislator Mukhtar Ansari and others. In all, nine cases had been registered against Ansari, BJP MLC Ramji Singh and others, he said. Asked whether Ansari would be arrested, Sinha said action would be taken against all those whose names figured in the FIRs. A Railway spokesman said movement of trains on the Varanasi-Mau section remained suspended for the fourth consecutive day. He said train services were likely to be restored in a couple of days. BJP General Secretary Rajnath Singh said the Mau violence had exposed the incompetence of the state government, adding "communal harmony always gets disturbed whenever the Samajwadi Party is in power". He said mass suspension of top district and police officials showed the administration was found lacking. The BJP leader demanded a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to each bereaved family. The Uttar Pradesh unit of the BJP will stage demonstrations across the state on October 21 to "highlight failure of the administration in controlling Mau violence".