What caused the clashes at the Hanuman Jayanti rally in Jahangirpuri, Delhi? Local residents endorse

*Paromita Das

On Saturday evening, a fight broke out between two communities during a Hanuman Jayanti procession in northwest Delhi’s Jahangirpuri area. Several police officers were injured in the midst of the chaos.

Stones were thrown, and some vehicles were set on fire, according to police, during the violence, which occurred around 6 p.m. on Saturday. Security personnel were sent to the area to help bring the situation under control.

Participants in the religious procession can be seen brandishing shotguns, pistols, and swords in videos obtained by India Today. The video was shot in the C-D Block Market in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri neighborhood on Saturday evening, before stone-pelting began.

#DelhiRiots 2.0: India Today accesses explosive video of people brandishing pistols & shotguns in Shobha yatra. @Sreya_Chattrjee with more details. #Jahangirpuri #ITVideo pic.twitter.com/DerJKz0psr

— IndiaToday (@IndiaToday) April 17, 2022

Two of the locals who shot the videos spoke exclusively to India Today. Anwara, a 30-year-old woman, stated, “I was leaving the market around 2.15 p.m. when the Hanuman Jayanti Shobha Yatra passed through. I saw people with guns, which is why I took the video.”

Sahil, a 15-year-old, added, “I was working in my shop. Hanuman Jayanti Yatras were passing through the market, and people were waving guns. From 2 onwards, the Yatras continued. I recorded the videos as proof.”
According to some other witnesses, the Hanuman Jayanti procession that erupted in violence began at 5.40 p.m. on Saturday evening.

Locals said there was a commotion within the procession just before it arrived at the religious site of another community where prayers were being held. Participants in the rally allegedly chanted loud slogans, played music, and attempted to place a flag at the religious site. According to some, this is what sparked the clash, despite the fact that similar Hanuman Jayanti rallies in the same area had gone off peacefully earlier in the day.

Others have refuted this version of events, claiming that Hanuman Jayanti rallies were also targeted in other locations.
According to another version of events, clashes erupted after the religious procession was allegedly halted due to loud music being played.

At 6.20 p.m., police received word of the clashes. By 7 p.m., additional forces had arrived on the scene. Within an hour, the situation was under control.
The police suspect that shots were fired during the clashes, in addition to heavy stone pelting and arson. One police officer is said to have suffered gunshot wounds.

Six rounds were fired, according to locals, but there has been no official confirmation of this.

Meanwhile, police are using drones to see if stones have been stored on house rooftops.

A group of people can be seen pelting stones in another video.
On Saturday, nine people were injured in a communal clash in Delhi. This group consists of eight cops and one civilian. The victims were taken to Babu Jagjivan Ram Memorial Hospital.

The Delhi Police have arrested 14 people in connection with Saturday’s clashes between two communities during a Hanuman Jayanti procession in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri.

One of the 14 is said to be the person who opened fire during the rally. He was classified as a’repeat offender’ by the police because he was allegedly involved in another case in 2020. He was said to have been found with a pistol.

Although he was previously reported to be 21, his family has now provided his birth certificate and claimed that he is a minor.

Even on a Sunday morning, there was heavy security deployment in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri area.