As Kasaragod and nearby localities are limping back to normalcy following the fatal attack on a young madrassa teacher at the Choori locality here recently, unidentified miscreants set afire a grocery shop at Mogral-Puthur here. Traders in the locality observed a day-long hartal to protest the incident.
The shop run by M. Satheesan, a resident of Mogral, was found aflame by an unidentified group around 3 a.m. The local residents informed the Fire and Rescue Services to contain the raging fire, which destroyed the entire stock of grocery and the cash counter of the shop.
While the police have launched a probe into the incident, the traders observed a day-long hartal in the locality.
The area had witnessed a series of violent incidents following the murder of Muhammed Riyas, 28, by a group of unidentified persons after they barged into the old Juma Masjid at the communally fragile Choori locality near here late on Monday.
Ban on two-wheelers
In a related development, the administration has enforced a ban on two-wheelers in the night in Kasaragod and Manjeswaram taluks and the adjoining Bekal police station limits.
In a statement, Superintendent of Police K.G. Simon, in an apparent bid to thwart escalation of violence in the sensitive localities, enforced the ban orders between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. until further orders.
Kasaragod and nearby localities that had witnessed widespread violence on Tuesday remained largely peaceful on the second day on Thursday, police sources here said.
The police have heightened vigil, especially in sensitive localities in and around the town in the light of the fatal attack on the madrassa teacher.
