Ex-BSP MLA Yogesh Verma 'main conspirator' in Dalit protests, says UP police

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh police on Monday said that a former Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA was the main conspirator behind the ‘Bharat Bandh’ protests, in which 2 people were killed and over 70 others injured across state.

At least 448 people were arrested as Uttar Pradesh saw widespread violence on a day Dalit groups protested what they claimed was the "dilution" of the provisions of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

"Two people have died in the state. One person lost his life in Muzaffarnagar, while another in Meerut," Principal Secretary Home Arvind Kumar told news agency PTI.

Several towns in western UP saw violence and a former BSP MLA from Hastinapur, Yogesh Verma, was arrested by the Meerut police in connection with the violence.

According to news agency ANI, Meerut SSP Manzil Saini said, "He is the main conspirator of this violence and we have detained him."

There were several incidents of violence in Meerut, including the torching of a police post while in the neighbouring Muzaffarnagar, a man was killed and several vehicles were damaged, they added.

"During the bandh, violence broke out in Muzaffarnagar, Hapur, Meerut, Agra and they were the most affected areas. Reports of violence have come from some other districts too. As of now, 448 persons have been detained in different districts. There were no incidents in 90 per cent of districts. We have sounded a high-alert in the state," DIG, Law and Order Praveen Kumar told reporters.

He earlier said that one person lost his life in the violence in Muzaffarnagar.

"We are yet to get the detailed reports. As of now about 35-40 policemen and 30-35 protestors were stated to be injured. Of them three are serious," the DIG said.

Asked about the extent of damage to public properties, the official said the police were yet to do a detailed analysis.

The situation was controlled by 2 pm in the affected districts, he said. It's normal now, he added.

Early on Monday, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath appealed to the people to maintain law and order and asserted that his government was "serious towards the development and progress of Dalits".

However, angry protesters pelted stones on buses in the Sagdi area of Azamgarh on the Gorakhpur-Azamgarh damaging their widow panes. They also set afire two roadways buses injuring some passengers, police said.

In Agra, Gatiman Express, India's fastest train, was stopped at the Billochpura station for over an hour.

A hotel owned by a senior BJP leader was targeted and the police had to open fire in air to disperse the rowdy mob, officials said.

Urging people not to resort to violence, Chief Minister Adityanath said, "Both the Centre and the state government are dedicated to the welfare of the backward castes, the scheduled castes and the scheduled tribes. If there is any issue, one can bring it to the notice of the government."

BSP chief Mayawati, however, targeted the Centre saying if it had taken prompt steps, there would not have been the need for a 'Bharat Bandh' and "some anti-social elements would not have got the chance to indulge in violence and arson because of government laxity".

BSP condemns violence but BJP governments need to extend help to the dead and injured without any bias, she said in a statement.

Mayawati said that though she was not in Parliament, her politics and struggle outside will force the Narendra Modi government "to kneel down and change its stance".

The constitutional rights of Dalits and tribals are continuously being encroached by the BJP, she alleged.

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav also targeted the Modi government claiming it should have talked to the Dalit leadership in time. Now it seems that Dalits have lost faith in the government, he said.

"It is most unfortunate if someone has to resort to the agitational path for restoring his honour and rights...Baba Saheb has given Dalits their right and no one can snatch it away," Yadav said in a party release.

The Supreme Court on March 20 had banned automatic arrests and registration of criminal cases under the Scheduled Castes (SC) and the Scheduled Tribes (ST) (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.

Ruling that no arrest can be made under the Act without prior permission, the apex court had also held that a court can grant anticipatory bail if it, prima facie, finds the complaint is an abuse of the law, false, motivated and intended to blackmail or harass a person. This was necessary, the court had said, to prevent the "rampant misuse of the tough provisions of the law".

The 'Bharat Bandh', called by various Dalit groups and backed by various political outfits, demands restoration of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in its original form.

(With inputs from agencies)