Hyderabad riots were pre-planned;aim to fan religious hatred

Hyderabad, Apr 9: With the old city of Hyderabad still tense after communal clashes erupted in Madannapet and Saidabad on Sunday, there is a surreal calm in the city after curfew was imposed by police authorities. An initial investigation on the incident by the Hyderabad police revealed that the violence was premeditated and was aimed at fanning religious hatred. [UPDATE:

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The incident that sparked violence was when a place of worship in Kurmaguda of Madannapet was desecrated by unknown persons. The act is taboo according to Hindu tradition and culture.

Hyderabad police commissioner AK Khan has been quoted as saying, “We have clues and our teams are working on them. So far around 70 suspects who are known anti-social elements have been picked up and are being grilled. Apart from this we have also identified five suspects in specific cases of violence.”

Khan added that there have been no deaths in the violence that erupted on Sunday, but five people have been injured, among which three have suffered stab wounds. Five cases have been booked by the Madannapet police including desecration of a religious place and for hurting religious sentiments. Four cases have been filed regarding the violence itself.

Santoshnagar assistant commissioner of police S Sai Krishna commented, “Two case of stone pelting and two cases of stabbings have been registered.”

The sporadic incidents of violence spilled across to parts of Saidabad, thereby triggering violence. The Saidabad police has also booked cases on the incident. The city police are making no stone unturned to curb the violence and towards this has picked up communal elements and history-sheeters to avoid the violence from spreading to other parts of the city.

In the West Zone alone, close to 300 history-sheeters have been detained. West Zone DCP Stephen Ravindra has appealed to the public to remain calm and stated, “Don’t give credence to rumours. Anyone who sends provocative SMSes will be punished. Those who post offensive messages on social networking sites like Facebook will also be brought to book.”

OneIndia News