UP: Saharanpur tense after Bhim Army leader's brother shot dead

Bhim Army march (File) A march by Bhim Army activists | Facebook account of Bhim Army

Tension prevails in the district of Saharanpur in western Uttar Pradesh, after the brother of the district chief of the dalit group Bhim Army was shot dead on Wednesday. Sachin Walia (25), brother of Bhim Army activist Kamal Walia, was killed under mysterious circumstances on Wednesday on the occasion of Maharana Pratap Jayanti.

Bhim Army supporters have accused the Rajputs (the upper caste group of the area) of killing Sachin.

Sachin's mother, Kanti, in her complaint to police, named Sher Singh Rana, Kanha Rana, Nagendra Rana and Updesh Rana for being involved in the incident. Among the accused, Sher Singh is accused in the murder of bandit queen Phoolan Devi.

This incident has made the atmosphere quite tense in the district. Heavy deployment of Rapid Action Force (RAF) has been undertaken and internet services suspended.

In May last year, riots had broken out in Saharanpur, after the killing of a dalit. In retaliation, members of both dalit and Rajput communities clashed with each other, resulting in large-scale violence. Then, the Bhim Army was accused of instigating violence in the area and its chief, Chandrashekhar Azad, was arrested subsequently.

The situation in the district was already tense on the occasion of Maharana Pratap Jayanti and the killing of Sachin has aggravated the situation.

As soon as the news of the killing became viral, members of the Bhim Army started reaching the district hospital in a large numbers. Across the district, Bhim Army activists were asked to assemble at certain points. This situation continued till late on Wednesday evening. Bhim Army activists resorted to road blockades and dharnas in the district, disrupting the movement of traffic.

The Senior Superintendent of Police Bablu Kumar said the incident was mysterious in nature and a complaint had been registered, and added the police was probing the role of the persons named in the complaint.