A heated exchange between two groups following a motorcycle accident grew into a mob clash that claimed a life and injured over a dozen people, including a police constable, in Raichur on Friday night. The deceased was later identified as Beesamma (26), a resident of Timmapurpet locality.
According to the police, the woman, who was with her husband and children at her house about 500 metres away from the spot of laticharge and teargas fire, died after she fell down rushing out of her home upon hearing the commotion. A police force, led by Superintendent of Police Chetan Singh Rathod, rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control. No formal arrests were made to balance the situation as there was still confusion over the death of the woman. On Saturday morning, Deputy Commissioner S. Sasikanth Senthil imposed prohibitory orders under Section 144 of Criminal Procedure Code in Timmapurpet and Harijanwada areas.
Petty issue
It all began when two motorcycles collided near LVD College on Friday afternoon. The incident led to a heated argument and physical clash between two groups in which Ravikumar, Venkanna and Timmayya, residents of Harijanwada, were injured. Enraged by the attack, a large group of youth from Harijanwada retaliated by ransacking a restaurant on Station Road and burnt an office on LVD Road, both belonging to Murali Yadav, a Congress leader and the resident of Timmapurpet.
Police rushed to the spot and dispersed the rioting mob through laticharge and teargas shelling at Timmapurpet. The Superintendent of Police camped in the area throughout the night and ensured continuous patrolling to prevent further violence. On Saturday morning, S. Murugan, Inspector General of Police, North Eastern Range, visited the city and took stock of the situation.
“The situation is under control. We have identified the persons involved in the rioting and will nab them,” Mr. Rathod told The Hindu.
Mr. Senthil said prohibitory orders will remain in force till tomorrow. “We will take a final call on the orders after assessing the ground situation,” he added.
