Udaipur: Home minister Gulab Chand Kataria on Saturday said that Police took timely and swift action to control the miscreants who disrupted peace in the city on Thursday.

Kataria was speaking to media on the sidelines of an event held to mark the completion of four years of the BJP government.

When asked how law and order went awry in the home minister’s own city, Kataria said, “The police did whatever was required according to the urgency of the situation. Had they not taken the preventive measures, Udaipur would have been burning now.”

The law and order situation in the city returned to normalcy as no untoward incident was reported from anywhere on Saturday. After a reconciliation meeting held with members of Hindu organizations on Friday evening, the administration had released 153 persons who were taken in custody on Thursday for breaching peace. These men were charged under Section 151 of the CrPC. Cases under severe charges, including physical assault, impeding government officials from their duty, damaging public property has been taken against 53 persons who were sent to judicial custody.

The police have also arrested 10 persons for provocative slogans during a procession held by the Muslim Mahasabha in Udaipur on December 8 to protest the Rajsamand ‘hate’ killing. Fifteen others have been booked for spreading objectionable content on Social Media.

The prohibitory orders under CrPC section 144 as well as ban on internet services were lifted late Saturday night.

Udaipur district administration has issued advisory to citizens not to believe in rumours circlulating on social media. “The bandh call given by a specific group has been withdrawn after a recounciliation meeting held on Saturday evening. There are a lot of false messages circulating on the social media related to some protest rally on December 25 in Udaipur; these are mere speculations and people are advised to cross check facts with the authorities before letting out any reaction,” district collector Bishnucharan Mallick said at a press conference. The DM said no permissions have been given to any rally or protest in connection to Rajsamand killing.
“It was a crucial time dealing with law and order situation but with the public and police co-operation, we managed to handle the crisis carefully and restore peace in the area. Section 144 has been lifted and so have been the internet services restored in the district,” Mallick said.
Udaipur SP Rajendra Prasad Goyal said the police team handled the situation sensitively and in the course more than two dozen policemen, including officers, sustained serious injuries. “To prevent such incidents in future, a joint cell of the district and police administration have been constituted to monitor hate speeches and videos being floated on social sites. Not only those who generate such message but also those who forward them in groups will be booked under relevant sections of the IT Act,” Goyal said.
The officer said that peace talks have been held with leaders of both communities and they have been asked to advice people, especially youth, to not indulge in any circulating hate messages or make religious comments. Source : timesofindia