GURUGRAM: The mob that attacked school buses and burnt down a Haryana Roadways bus in the city on Wednesday afternoon to stop the screening of 'Padmaavat' was made up mostly of young boys barely 20 years old or a bit older.
TOI saw many of them in school uniform or PT (physical training) dresses as they ran amok on a stretch between the police station at Bhondsi and the Indian Reserve Battallion (IRB) campus. There were only around 60 of them but they managed to hold up the entire highway for three hours by letting loose a sudden burst of violence that caught the police by surprise despite a state of high alert being declared 24 hours ago. Police said 24 alleged protesters were detained.
"There were people who were protesting on the road and the cops were trying to disperse them. Suddenly, the mob came from nowhere and started throwing stones at us," said Pravesh Kumar, who was at the wheel of the GD Goenka school bus (HR55 J3112) and managed to keep driving so that the bus did not become a sitting duck to the mob attack. "The hooligans wanted to set the bus on fire. They tried to torch a tyre. But a few of them were against harming people and didn't let it happen," said Suresh Kumar, an eyewitness.
Neeta Bali, principal of the school, said none the students received injuries. "One of our buses that was moving towards Gurgaon was attacked at Ghamroj by stone-pelters. They damaged the windows. All kids and teachers ducked for cover on the floor. No one was hurt. We immediately called all our buses back. The parents were informed, snacks were given to the kids and they were sent home an hour later," Bali said. "We have decided to keep the school closed on Thursday, seeing the unrest." At least three more Gurgaon schools — Lotus Valley International, Ardee and Shri Ram (Aravali) — also declared Thursday a holiday.
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Queued up behind the GD Goenka bus were at least seven more school buses and scores of cars that were stuck in the jam that ensued. These were also targeted by the mob but escaped any major damage. The attack on the lane headed towards Gurgaon city appeared to have been started by a breakaway group that had around 3pm set the Roadways bus — (HR73 7281), coming from Palwal — on fire after forcing all its passengers to get off. When this correspondent followed them and reached the violence spot, some of the youths threatened and heckled her too. They also attacked two fire tenders and a police team coming in their direction, forcing them to turn back.
The mob had managed to set up a roadblock with hay and construction material. They threw stones and glass bottles at every passing vehicle. "I live here. I don't understand what is going on. They are throwing stones at me when I'm trying to go home," a young woman, who said she was a college student, told this correspondent.
The mob was able to run amok because only half a dozen cops were initially present at the site. Reinforcements took a while to arrive because of the blockade and the rioting. Eventually, over 200 cops headed by DCP (south) Ashok Bakshi, Rapid Action Force personnel and Quick Response Teams reached the spot. Police said they fired five rounds in the air to disperse the crowd. By evening, 24 people were detained and 13 of them, several suspected to be minors, named in an FIR filed at Bhondsi police station for rioting, vandalism and various other sections of the IPC.
While the violence was attributed to supporters of a fringe group, the Karni Sena, that has been spearheading protests against Padmaavat, its general secretary Suraj Pal Ammu denied their involvement. "It is unfortunate and we condemn the attacks on people and government machinery. Karni Sena is not involved in any of these as we are against violence. We want to protest peacefully and are using social media to spread the message," said Ammu.
Coming under heavy fire, the Rajput Ekta Foundation also condemned the violence. "This is anti-Rajput propaganda because Rajputs have always acted as bravehearts and not like cowards. We can never indulge in such shameful acts of targeting school children," said Satyendra Singh, its secretary.
"We are probing all the incidents that took place in the city. Overall, the situation is calm," said Gurgaon police commissioner Sandeep Khirwar.
In Delhi, a group of Karni Sena supporters smashed the windscreen of a few cars parked on the roadside near a cinema hall in Maurya Enclave in northwest Delhi, while another group created a ruckus near a mall in Prashant Vihar on Wednesday.
A group of miscreants also gathered near Alipur in north Delhi, while another group tried to instigate some school students to stage a protest near Timarpur and managed to block a road for some time.
The first incident was reported around 11am near the PVR Prashant Vihar when a group of 20-25 demonstrators tried to create a ruckus. However, a police team posted near the hall, chased them away.
"We detained a few of them for some time until the others dispersed. They were released later in the evening," said Rajneesh Gupta, DCP, Rohini.
Around 4pm, a group of 100-125 protesters went on a sit-in protest near Rithala Metro station and blocked the road for a while. The third incident was reported from near a PVR cinema hall near Maurya Enclave in northwest Delhi, where a group of miscreants claiming to be from the Karni Sena, smashed the rear windshields of four vehicles parked outside the movie hall. "We have registered a case and are trying to identify the miscreants," said Aslam Khan, DCP, north-west.
Violence at a few places marred the otherwise peaceful screenings of Padmaavat movie in Noida and Ghaziabad amid heightened security around cinemas and on main roads.
