Thakurs stoned a Dalit groom's procession in an Uttar Pradesh village on Saturday night, leaving a police constable and three baraatis injured, police sources said.

The Thakurs had objected to the route taken by the groom’s party on its way to the Dalit bride's home in village Dhakpur in Etah district, senior superintendent of police Shyam Narayan Singh said on Sunday morning.

"The marriage was solemnised in the presence of the police and the bride left for the groom’s home in a peaceful atmosphere," Singh said.

A relative of the bride said on the condition of anonymity that the family would not lodge a police complaint.

"The Thakurs had declared two days ago that they wouldn’t let the baraat pass through their hamlet," he said.

"We gave a written application to the police and they deployed cops on the route, which was shorter than the one the Thakurs wanted us to take."

The Thakurs blocked the procession and the stoning began in the presence of the police.

Singh said: "Stone-throwing during a minor altercation between villagers from the two communities left constable Sunil Kumar injured. He has been admitted to hospital."

Another police source said three baraatis too suffered injuries.

"Nobody should be allowed to block any road for any reason. The villagers are peace-loving. They listened to us and allowed the baraat to pass through its chosen route," Singh said.

He added: "The girl’s father died a few years ago, and so the entire village had pitched in for the marriage. However, we have deployed forces in the village to avert any backlash."

Dev Charan, a relative of the groom, said: "The police helped us complete the marriage rituals and we returned home (to another village in the district) without any ill-will against anybody."

A member of the Thakur community was quoted as telling local reporters: "They suddenly decided to follow a route that was not in their plans before. We don’t know who started pelting them with stones."

On April 17, some upper caste villagers of Chhalesar in Agra, 85km west of Etah, had attacked a Dalit groom for riding a horse and playing music on his way to the bride’s home.