The trouble started when some people objected to harassment of a mentally unstable man. A clash ensued, which soon developed into a free-for-all. Before long, the violence spread to Kalupur and Sarspur areas. Four persons were stabbed, one of whom later died in V S Hospital.

The police resorted to firing to disperse the mobs, injuring one man who was hospitalised in a critical condition. Three others were injured in incidents of stone pelting. The mobs also burnt six vehicles and ransacked a shop selling drums. Violence continued even after imposition of curfew.

Late in the evening, Police Commissioner P C Pandey said the situation was under control, but tension prevailed. Pandey was surprised that ``such a smallincident'' blew up into a riot. ``It seems, we are sitting on a powder keg,'' he remarked.

It was around 3 pm that the first clash took place in Dabgarwad. The drum shop was ransacked, a heap of drums made on the road and burnt before the police and fire brigade reached the spot. The violence then spread to Kadia naka and Naginapole areas.

Four vehicles were burnt at Changez Pole, Dhana Suthar ni Pole and Nagina Pole in Dariapur, and one each near Jhinjhuwadia ni Pole in Kalupur, at Gheekanta crossroads and near Jhalampuri ni Chali in Saraspur, fire brigade sources said. One house was also burnt in Jhalampuri ni Chali.

Incidents of stone-pelting were also reported from Kalupur, Saraspur and Gheekanta. Among those injured in Kalupur was the photographer of a local daily. The Police Commissioner said violence spread to these areas when some injured persons went there. The police fired 21 rounds of ammunition and 120 tear-gas shells in the affected areas.

The stabbing incidents took place in Dabgarwad inDariapur, Panchkuva in Kalupur. One of those stabbed in Dabgarwad later died in hospital. Two others were undergoing medical treatment in the V S Hospital and Civil Hospital.

As the violence spread, shopkeepers panicked and downed shutters. Shops also closed down in Shahpur, Mirzapur and the Delhi Darwaja, although these areas remained free from trouble. In Dariapur, the police had a tough time as the rioters, who indulged in stone-pelting, eluded police by escaping in the narrow lanes and bylanes. The tear-gas smoke seemed to have little effect on them.

Top police officials rushed to the spot and reinforcements from nearby police stations were summoned. As stone-pelting continued, State Reserve Police was also summoned. Soon relief came in the form of heavy rain and the rioters dispersed. This is the first time after January 1993 that curfew has been imposed in Ahmedabad, police sources said.