Battlefield Seelampur as police-people clash during 'bandh'

New Delhi, Sep 20 (UNI) The roughly five kilometre area between Seelampur and Maujpur here resembled a battle ground with strewn stones, bricks and broken sticks all around, as groups of men and children fought pitched battle for more than two hours.

Even cemented road dividers over the entire stretch had been reduced to dust by the agitating mob.

Violence ignited when the trading community called a'bandh' today against the ongoing sealing and demolition of commercial properties in residential areas in the Capital.

Several traffic lights and sapling covers were also broken by the rampaging mob, which also set on fire a motorcycle belonging to the police.

Among those at the forefront were mostly youngsters who indulged in uncalled for stone-pelting and high decibel sloganeering. Others, in their late 20s and 30s, followed the crowd and none were traders.

Sources confirmed that lumpen elements of the area were behind the violent 'attack' on the police, which led to the situtaion getting out of control later. ''It was a chain reaction which saw the crowd growing in numbers after some were thrashed by the police following the stone-pelting.'' Later pitched battles between agitators and the police were fought at several places with the worse reported from Bhajanpura and Seelampur, where the scene turned ugly after rampaging mob attacked the police party, said sources.

''The mob initially took to stone-pelting but after the 'attack' turned violent, the police resorted to lathicharge in which several people were injured. Later, as the crowd swelled and others joined the protests, police used tear gas shells to disperse the mob.'' In the brickbatting, several dozen policemen, including area Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) and an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), were injured, they said.

''When eveything failed to quell the aggressively approaching mob, which continued to pelt stones at the police team, it resorted to firing in which two persons died.'' In total about 30 persons were seriously injured of which most were admitted to the G T B Hospital, sources added.

Additional DCP (North-East) Rajiv Ranjan said the violence had nothing to do with the 'bandh' call by traders.

''Some anti-social elements took advantage of the situation and created the flare-up.'' Virtually giving a clean chit to the agitating traders, he said the 'bandh' was peaceful and the traders were winding up the agitation at about 1130 hrs when some lumpen elements took over.

''Not less than 50 policemen, including senior police officials, were injured in the attack by the mob.'' Two persons, including a 7-year-old child, were killed in firing by police at a violent mob in Seelampur area of North-East Delhi as agitation by traders in the Capital entered a violent phase with protestors and demonstrators confronting the police at several places.

However, some reports said the toll in today's firing had reached three. Senior police officials could not be contacted for confirmation.

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