Bharat Bandh: Six dead as Dalit groups clash with police over SC/ST Act

New Delhi: Four people died in Madhya Pradesh – one in Gwalior, one from Morena and another in Bhind – and one each died in UP’s Muzaffarnagar and Rajasthan’s Alwar on Monday during protests against the Supreme Court order diluting the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act.
While some states ordered the closure of educational institutions and curtailed communication and transport services, including rail, incidents of arson and vandalism were reported from Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Punjab, among other states.
Curfew was imposed in Morena, Gwalior and Bhind districts of Madhya Pradesh.
In Morena, Rahul Pathak was reportedly standing on the balcony of his house in an area where demonstrators clashed with police personnel. During the unrest, a bullet was fired – hitting Rahul who died en route to the hospital.
Bhind-based Mahavir Rajawat died of gunshot wounds during the clash.
Another person was shot dead during clashes in Gwalior. On the other hand, one person each is reported to have died in UP’s Muzaffarnagar and one from Rajasthan’s Alwar.
A man was videotaped brandishing a pistol and firing shots but it is not confirmed if the victim here was killed by the same person.
While a curfew has been imposed in Morena and Gwalior, similar instances of violence have been reported from many other parts of the country. Protestors resorted to stone pelting in Agra, cars and public buses were burnt in Meerut, shops were vandalised in Hapur, halting long-distance trains across Bihar, sloganeering in Delhi’s Mandi House. Reports of violence also came in from Punjab where CBSE exams had to be put off and security heightened.
Violence from across the state has led to curfew being clamped in several parts with Gwalior and Morena seeing the worst of unrest.