Tension grips #Faridabad village after two communities clash over land

Houses and vehicles belonging to a minority community in Atali village were torched during communal violence in the district late on Monday evening.

Clashes broke out over a disputed piece of land, where one community was building a religious structure.

The district administration imposed Section 144 in and around the village as a precautionary measure and prohibited carrying weapons in the area, with immediate effect.

Members of the local minority community claim that the disputed land belongs to them, while members of the majority community claim it belongs to the panchayat.

On Monday night, members of the majority community allegedly attacked minorities in the village torching vehicles and a dozen houses. The two sides later resorted to stone pelting, during which some people were reported injured.

The local police has registered an FIR against 20 residents of the village and a massive hunt has been launched to trace and arrest them. Clashes left the minority community scared and the local administration had to accommodate them at the Ballabgarh city police station to extend police protection to them.

The site where the structure was being built has been disputed for a while. Members of the minority community started constructing the structure after they took the dispute to court and received a judgment in their favour.

Monday’s incident is fallout of this dispute. “Families that were put under protection at the Ballabgarh police station have returned home. I and the commissioner are camping in the village,” said Aditya Dahiya, additional deputy commissioner, Faridabad.