Bharatpur clash: Day after,no arrests,death toll four

The police had opened fire on two groups who were engaged in a gun battle after firing in the air through the day in a show of might during an ongoing land dispute.

Empty cartridges strewn over the road and charred remains of what used to be shops are reminders of the violent evening that shook the sleepy village of Gopalgarh in Rajasthan on Wednesday.

The police had opened fire on two groups who were engaged in a gun battle after firing in the air through the day in a show of might during an ongoing land dispute. Bodies of three people were taken away from the spot on Wednesday night,while another was found decaying in a field nearby on Thursday morning.

Krishan Kunal,District Magistrate of Bharatpur,where Gopalgarh is situated,said two of the 21 others who were injured were critical.

However,a day later,authorities were yet to arrest or detain anyone or even seize any firearm that may have been used in what they said was a fierce gun battle that lasted well over an hour.

We have registered a criminal case of murder,rioting and arson. No one has been detained so far,nor have any seizures been made, said Hinglal Dan,SP,Bharatpur. Dan said they had not yet taken a count of how many rounds the police fired. Another senior police officer said they had identified at least 15 rioters.

When asked about the weapons that the warring groups may have used,DM Kunal said,All I can tell you is,they had good weapons. Rescuers were till late on Thursday trying to pull out from a well nearby what could be two more bodies,but Dan said only a post mortem could confirm if they were human remains.

The deathly silence that prevailed in the empty streets of Gopalgarh on Thursday was broken only by the loud hum of riot control trucks and police jeeps.

Story continues below this ad

Kunal said law and order had been fully restored by Thursday morning and security personnel were taking out flag marches in and around the village. The police said a curfew enforced in six police station areas adjoining Gopalgarh will continue on Friday too.

All the four who died in the gun battle belonged to the dominant Meo community,while among the injured were also those from the rival Gujjar community,the police said. The warring groups attacked each other with guns,butchers knife and anything they could lay their hands on,the police said.

The DM said the trigger was a piece of land a little more than six bighas situated next to the village mosque. The Meos say the land belongs to graveyard that shares its boundary with the plot,while the Gujjars say they own it. Kunal said the dispute has continued for nearly four decades. After the two communities fought again two months back,we asked the Sub Divisional Officer to begin a case to settle the ownership dispute. The case is subjudiced, Kunal said.

Fresh trouble began when men from the two communities began arguing over the land again on Tuesday,and rumour spread that the Imam had been roughed up. The unrest began to simmer when on Wednesday morning hundreds of Meos and Gujjars from neighbouring villages converged at Gopalgarh,the police said. Some Jats also came.

Story continues below this ad

District management and police officials who had reached the place called representatives of the two communities to the police station less than 50 m away to resolve the dispute,said officials. Just when a resolution was about to be made,gun shots were heard outside,policemen recalled. We ran outside and saw the two groups had begun firing at each other. A few senior officers who ventured nearer to the rioters had to rush back, a policeman said.