Saharanpur clash planned by Dalit outfit

A little-known Dalit group led by a lawyer - Bheem Army - actively used social media to rally protesters and allegedly orchestrated May 9's violence here, in which a police post was set on fire and a number of persons injured, district authorities said yesterday

A car damaged in the clash in Saharanpur on May. File Pic/PTI

A little-known Dalit group led by a lawyer - Bheem Army - actively used social media to rally protesters and allegedly orchestrated May 9's violence here, in which a police post was set on fire and a number of persons injured, district authorities said yesterday.

Officials said the group was enraged over members of the Thakur community allegedly clashing with Dalits and torching their houses in Shabbirpur village on May 5 after they refused to allow a procession to mark the birth anniversary of Rajput king Maharana Pratap.

Some of those injured in the May 5 clashes and recuperating at the district hospital here said their community members objected to the procession as upper caste Thakurs had earlier stopped Dalits from installing a statue of BR Ambedkar on the premises of a Ravidas Mandir in the village.

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