Curfew has been lifted in some areas in Nagpur on Thursday, three days after violence rocked the city, officials said. Violent mobs went on a rampage in central Nagpur areas on Monday night amid rumours that a ‘chadar’ with holy inscriptions was burnt during protests led by VHP and Bajrang Dal for the removal of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb's tomb located in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district.
Subsequently, curfew was imposed in Kotwali, Ganeshpeth, Tehsil, Lakadganj, Pachpaoli, Shanti Nagar, Sakkardara, Nandanvan, Imambada, Yashodhara Nagar and Kapil Nagar police station areas. Considering the people's convenience and law and order, Commissioner of Police Ravinder Singal ordered the lifting of curfew from Nandanvan and Kapil Nagar police station areas from 2 pm on Thursday.
Besides, Singal ordered for the relaxation of curfew in Lakadganj, Pachpaoli, Shantinagar, Sakkardara and Imambada areas from 2 pm to 4 pm to allow the people to venture out to buy the essential items of daily need.
Police form 18 special teams to nab culprits
Earlier in the day, officials said that the police have formed 18 special teams to track down and arrest those involved in the violence in Maharashtra's Nagpur city.
As of now, 69 persons have been arrested in connection with the violence which took place here on Monday. Curfew remained imposed in several areas of the city for the third day on Thursday.
The police have so far identified 200 accused and are actively working to identify another 1,000 suspects captured in CCTV footage of the riots, a senior official said. On Monday, five First Information Reports (FIRs) were registered at the Ganeshpeth and Kotwali police stations wherein 200 accused have been named.
Efforts were on to identify the others involved in the violence with the help of the CCTV footage, the official said. Nagpur Commissioner of Police Dr Ravinder Kumar Singal on Wednesday told reporters that the special teams formed include personnel from the Ganeshpeth, Kotwali and Tehsil police stations, along with the Crime Branch