Mira Road communal clash: Police presence would surely have prevented skirmish

Locals at Mira Road have alleged complete failure on the part of intelligence and the police that led to the clash in the area where two religious groups indulged in violence and vandalised dozens of cars on Sunday night. Sources in Mira Road told mid-day that the commissioner of Mira Bhayandar Vasai Virar (MBVV) police was absent from the crime scene, which resulted in the situation escalating. They said this was the only area in the state where the cops failed to control the situation.

"The previous commissioner (Sadanand Date) would always visit the crime spot, but the present police commissioner (Madhukar Pandey) did not even care to visit the spot where rioting grievously injured many people and left several vehicles vandalised. His presence would have made the situation different, but he chose to remain off the crime scene which allowed the rioters to create a nuisance on the road," said the source.

When contacted, MBVV police chief Pandey said, "I was in touch with the home minister till 3.30 am. I will speak to you after 30 minutes." However, when the mid-day correspondent tried to reach out to him after 30 minutes, Pandey did not respond.

Heavy police deployment in Naya Nagar on Tuesday. Pic/Hanif Patel

There is a sizeable number of anti-social elements in the Naya Nagar area of Mira Road where such rioting is very common. Though most of the cases are not reported or diluted at the police station level, amounting to deep-rooted corruption in the system, sources said that if there was enough police presence on the road it would have deterred the rioters on the night of January 21. Some of the rioters were carrying sharp-edged weapons while one brandished a gun.

Vinod Babulal Jaiswal, 43, who registered an FIR at Naya Nagar police station in connection with the riot, said that even junior rank officials reached the crime spot near Tina Villa Masjid an hour late. "This allowed the rioters to swell in numbers while they assaulted women and children. The rioters also manhandled police personnel and pelted stones at them," said Jaiswal.

According to Jaiswal, he was out with his family to celebrate and they decided to take the Tina Villa Masjid route due to traffic on the road. "We were a group of eight to nine vehicles in total and the people from the mosque misinterpreted it as a ‘juloos'. They stopped our vehicles and started attacking us," Jaiswal said, adding that within three minutes, nearly 300 rioters wielding sharp-edged weapons, iron rods and large stones arrived at the spot and started vandalising their vehicles while abusing them.

"This seems to be a pre-planned attack. Nearly 50 rioters had surrounded each car and they were chanting religious slogans. I was completely terrified," he added. "I was there at the spot for nearly 45 minutes but there was no sign of any police. Two policemen had reached the spot but the violent mob also roughed them up."

"We have always seen a heavy presence of police near Tina Villa Masjid. But on January 21, there was no police at all near the mosque. Why was there no police at all?" he questioned. Jaiswal said he believes that politicians are involved in this clash and that the incident needs to be investigated thoroughly. The Naya Nagar area of Mira Road is the epicentre of crime in the MBVV police commissionerate.

Heavy bandobast

The MBVV police deployed 2,500 personnel, including Rapid Action Force, commandos, Fire Brigade officers, SRPF, and riot control teams in Mira Road on Tuesday morning after riots broke out between two groups in the Naya Nagar area. Locals have criticised the police for their failure to act on time, stating that the riots escalated due to their negligence.

Despite a previous history of riots in the area, the MBVV police did not take the necessary measures to maintain order. An eyewitness, Sayyed Shaukat Ali, told mid-day, "I was present at the spot outside Tina Villa Masjid when a group of around 50-60 people arrived on bikes and cars, chanting 'Jai Shree Ram'. Not a single policeman was present. One biker with a saffron flag hit a person crossing the road, leading to a fight. One of them began exploding firecrackers, and a man on a bullet bike was using a noisy silencer. Locals started taking photos and videos, which went viral on social media and WhatsApp."
Ali said that both groups assumed the fight had a communal angle and tensions escalated due to misinformation.

A police source stated, "The viral videos encouraged the groups, and they started throwing stones at each other on the back road on Monday afternoon. The situation quickly escalated into uncontrollable riots." The police also conducted a march in Naya Nagar on Monday morning to prevent further riots and control the situation.

Meanwhile, the MBVV police issued a statement asking people not to spread rumours or any videos on social media that could create a nuisance. "Any person found to be hurting religious sentiments will be booked and appropriate action will be taken against the group admin as well."

2,500
No of personnel deployed