Ahmedabad: Tension on Thursday prevailed in the riot-hit area of old city where authorities deployed 1,600 policemen and arrested nine people in connection with the violence that has left one person dead and 22 others injured since Monday.
Joint Commissioner of Police (JCP) Satish Sharma said that they were trying to ascertain if the riots were engineered though so far they had not got any indication to this effect.
"Twelve cases have been registered in connection with the riots, and nine persons have been arrested while five have been put under preventive arrest," Sharma told reporters.
"Since Monday, the city had been witnessing violence in Shahpur locality which has traditionally been a communally sensitive area. But the situation today is fairly under control," he said.
Riots broke out on Monday here after a dispute over a marriage procession passing near a mosque during evening prayers, police have said.
"One person had died, while 22 others, including 10 policemen were injured in the stone pelting incidents in the last three days," Sharma said.
The JCP said police fired 22 rounds and lobbed 180 tear gas shells to bring the situation under control.
"Six companies of State Reserve Police (SRP), two Rapid Action Force (RAF) and over 800 police jawans have been deployed in the Shahpur and nearby areas," he said, adding that there were couple of similar incidents in Kalupur and Madhupura areas also.
"We are investigating how the entire thing began and who were involved in it. We are also probing if the riots were engineered or not. So far we have not got any indication which could suggest that they were engineered," Sharma said.
About the stabbing incidents that took place on Tuesday, he said that they have got information about the suspects and are trying to trace them. "We have leads on the people who were involved in the riots and are looking for them. They will be caught soon," he said.
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