Giridih (Jharkhand): After the communal clash and stone-pelting incident in Pachamba of Giridih on Sunday, about 150 families have put up 'for sale' posters outside their houses in Hatia Road of the Pachamba police station area. The Pachamba market was also closed on Tuesday, as a part of the protest against the local police for allegedly taking unilateral action after the communal clash. On June 12, there was a fierce stone-pelting incident between two communities in Hatia Road of Pachamba over a molestation case.
The police arrested seven people including two minors and sent them to Hazaribagh Remand Home and thereafter to the Giridih jail on Monday. People of the Hindu community are agitated after the incident and are alleging that the police actions are unilateral actions, while their localities get targeted again and again.
The local police have registered FIRs against the people accused in the incidents of stone-pelting and molestation, which according to the protesters is an unfair move considering that the accused are in fact innocent. Dozens of people including BJP leader and former MLA of the area Nirbhay Kumar Shahabadi, advocate union secretary cum BJP leader Chunnukant, Koderma MP representative Dinesh Yadav, local Nagendra Singh, Deepak Shah were a part of this protest. These people claimed that "stones were pelted on Sunday after which the police registered an FIR against those who were in their houses and shops defending themselves during stone-pelting." Reacting to the allegations, the police said that an FIR has been registered on the basis of CCTV footage.
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Talking to ETV Bharat, a localite said "stone pelters and defenders both have been captured in the footage, so how has the police differentiated the former from the latter? The administration should stop taking baseless actions and take action only when they have concrete proof against the guilty."
Even as the ruling JMM opposed the police's move, the law enforcers said the errors would be rectified and the posters put up again. Meanwhile, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) strongly objected to the issuing of posters, saying there was no need for it as the police already has ample information about the protesters and the move may create further unrest. Police said that efforts are underway to identify around 30 people who were involved in the violence.
