Internet services have been suspended at Vikasnagar in Dehradun district to prevent the violence stemming from the killing of a BJP functionary on Saturday night from metastasising.
Vinod Kumar Kashyap, deputy convener of the BJP’s OBC cell, was beaten to death in an attack on his home by a group of people in Muslim-majority Bairagiwala village, sparking violent protests.
On Sunday morning, Right-wing groups held a protest in the village, demanded action against the culprits and torched the house of two of around four dozen accused persons. As tensions escalated, the Pushkar Singh Dhami government sent a bulldozer and razed the alleged illegal house of one of the accused amid slogans of “Jai Shri Ram” by the crowd.
Dhami condemned the killing, stating that the “jihadi and violent mindset attempting to disrupt the peace and social harmony of Uttarakhand would not be tolerated under any circumstances”.
According to the police, an argument broke out between Vinod and Mohammad Imtiyaz on Saturday evening over irrigating a field.
Following the quarrel, a group of over 40 people armed with sticks, hammers and shovels stormed Vinod’s house and assaulted the family. Vinod died after being struck on the head with a hammer.
The police said the two sides had a history of animosity and had engaged in heated exchanges over irrigation water in recent days.
Vinod’s younger brother Ashok Kumar filed a case on Saturday night against fellow villagers Imtiyaz, Masoom Ali, Razzak Ali, Amaan Ali, Sharafat Ali, Mohammad Yunus, Mohammad Shabaz, Mohammad Salman, Mohammad Javed and 40 other unidentified people, accusing them of barging into their house and attacking them with sharp weapons.
“Imtiyaz had diverted irrigation water that we were drawing from a government pump to our field. We opposed this and returned home. Later, Imtiyaz, his family members and neighbours barged into our house, attacked us and killed my brother,” Ashok said in his complaint.
Vinod’s other brother Rajesh and his wife Sushma are being treated at Lehman Hospital in Harbartpur for their injuries.
The police have arrested Razzak, Javed, Shabaz and Salman. The other accused are absconding with their family members. The police have sought help from their counterparts in Himachal Pradesh to nab them.
The houses of Amaan and Razzak have also been demolished.
Villagers said there was old enmity between the families of Imtiyaz and Vinod. “Vinod was also a social activist and used to file complaints of land grab against Ispak based on RTI replies he would receive from the government. The two families had fought in the past, too,” a villager said.
Jitendra Chaudhary, superintendent of police (crime), said: “We had registered a case based on the complaint of a family member of the victim. The police action is underway. We appeal to the public not to pay attention to false information circulating on the Internet about the incident.”
A police source said Internet services would be restored on Monday if the situation remained normal. “We have tracked the location of some of the accused persons to Himachal Pradesh. Six police teams have been formed to arrest them,” the source said.