M'lore: Youth assaulted during curfew relaxation

Mangalore, Oct 9: An youth was today assaulted by two persons at J M Road in Bunder area here when curfew was relaxed in the trouble-torn Dakshina Kannada district for a few hours.

District Superintendent of Police B Dayanand said that barring this incident, the overall situation remained peaceful and was under control. The injured youth was hospitalised.

Addressing a press conference here, Karnataka Home Minister M P Prakash warned that stringent action would be taken against those instigating communal clashes in the district. The Government would accord priority to restoring peace and take action against those responsible for the clashes, that left two dead and injured 88 people , including four seriously.

To a question, he said the Government was seriously considering to initiate action against those who had given a bandh call without any information to the district administration and the public.

Criticising the allegations of the Opposition Congress that the Government had failed in containing the violence, the Minister asked the Opposition to behave responsibly and prove to be a constructive Opposition. The Government had taken appropriate steps to control the situation and lauded the district administration's handling of the issue. The district administration had exercised restraint by not resorting to firing despite having a shoot-at-sight order in place. The Congress rule in the State had seen many more such incidents with upto four or five deaths, he alleged.

Mr Prakash appealed to the Opposition, public, media and various organisations to cooperate with the Government in restoring peace and communal harmony in the district. He took exception to a section of the media publishing photos and reports which added fuel to fire.

Stating that he would apprise the Governor and the Chief Minister of the situation in the city, he said he would talk to the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister to ensure that adequate compensation was paid to those affected in the communal clashes. So far, 158 cases have been registered and 132 people arrested, and the loss on account of the violence was estimated at Rs 90 lakh.

UNI

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