PIONEER NEWS SERVICE/Haridwar
The trend of hooliganism in the name of Kanwad Yatra was witnessed once again late on Thursday night when a group of men damaged an SUV after a minor incident on the Haridwar-Delhi national highway in Haridwar district. The police arrested five Ghaziabad residents based on the complaint lodged by the SUV owner. The incident which coincided with the formal start of the Kanwad Yatra is not the first case of violence by men travelling from various States as part of the pilgrimage.
According to the police, a Scorpio driver on the highway had a minor argument with a group of Kanwadiyas on a traffic related issue near Belda village. The men ended up thrashing the vehicle with sticks and also beat the driver while trying to cause a traffic jam. A video of the incident also went viral on social media. The Roorkee Kotwali police reached the site on receiving information. The police normalised the traffic and took five men into custody for indulging in violence. The Scorpio driver was sent to the Roorkee civil hospital for treatment. Based on the complaint lodged by the vehicle owner, the police booked the Kanwadiyas under various sections. The accused have been identified as Ghaziabad residents Manish (19), Anurag (20), Aman (18), Abhishek Sharma (24) and Kapil (19). The police stated that the accused were to be presented before the court.
It is pertinent to mention here that a day before this incident, men participating in the Kanwad Yatra damaged a car and attacked the driver after a minor incident in the Bahadrabad area. The police somehow managed to save the driver from those indulging in violence. Similarly, some of the water being carried by a Kanwadiya was spilled after being hit by a hand cart in the Jwalapur Kotwali area. Other men started beating the vendor who was then saved by the police. The police have been appealing to visitors to not escalate minor incidents and to not violate the law. However, this has had limited effect on unruly elements visiting the State.
