5 Dead, Over 100 Injured In Jaffrabad Riots, Fresh Stone-Pelting In Maujpur Area

Five people including a Delhi Police constable were killed and over 100 injured in the Jaffrabad riots in North-East Delhi on Tuesday. Latest TV visuals showed fresh stone-pelting in the Maujpur area. An ABP report said that two vehicles were set on fir in morning hours on Tuesday. Section 144 of the CrPC have been imposed in riot-hit parts of the North-East Delhi. The Delhi Metro rail Corporation on Tuesday morning announced that the trains will be terminated at the Welcome Metro Station. “Jaffrabad, Maujpur-Babarpur, Gokulpuri, Johri Enclave and Shiv Vihar will continue to remain closed,” the DMRC said on Twitter.

Situation remains tense in the area. All schools and shops remain shut in the area. Sporadic incidents of arson and stone-pelting were reported from the area throughout the night. Rioters set ablaze a tyre market in the Gokulpuri area on Monday night around 11 pm. Firefighters managed to douse the blaze within hours. No casualty was reported in the fire. Onlookers said that had the firefighters no succeeded, things could have got out of control since the tyre market was located near the Gokulpuri Metro Station.

The violence that went on for more than 10 hours have sparked intense debate over the role of the Delhi Police and the Aam Aadmi Party government. Gopal Rai, senior AAP minister and local lawmaker from Babarpur constituency, was seen camping outside Delhi LG Anil Baijal’s residence after midnight. Demanding adequate police deployment, Rai appealed for peace and communal harmony.

Government sources said the violence in the national capital appears to have been "orchestrated" by some for publicity as it comes at a time when Trump is visiting the country. They said Delhi Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik was stationed at the police control room and closely monitoring the situation.

Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla told reporters the situation in the national capital was fully under control and sufficient forces were deployed on the ground. Officials said at least eight companies (100 personnel each) of central armed police were present on the ground, besides the Delhi Police.

BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi said the death of a Delhi Police head constable was a "ploy" to embarrass India during Trump's visit and likened it to the massacre of Sikhs in Chattisinghpura in 2000 during the then US president Bill Clinton's trip to the country. 

“Shocked to hear the death of HC Sh Ratanlal in a brutal & barbaric manner. This reminds me of massacre of Sikhs in Chattisinghpura during Clinton's visit. Incidents change but anti India forces remain the same. Ploy to embarrass India, Request all to remain calm & maintain peace,” she said in a tweet.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday condemned the violence in Delhi and urged people to show restraint, compassion and understanding irrespective of the provocation. He said peaceful protests are a sign of a healthy democracy, but violence can never be justified.

(With agency inputs)