Vansh Kawle, a resident of Nagpur, was one of those who saw the mob approaching, which then led to violent clashes in the city. Narrating the horror, Kawle told PTI that the mob had their faces covered. He also said they damaged the CCTV cameras in the vicinity and attempted to barge into several homes.
Similar to what Kawle experienced, some said the mob had sharp weapons in their hands.
Fifty-year-old Sharad Gupta said his four two-wheelers, parked in front of his home, were burnt by the mob between 10.30 and 11.30 pm. Gupta also said the group threw stones and torched many other vehicles as well.
Gupta was injured in the attack and said that the mob also vandalised a neighbour’s shop. He added that the police arrived an hour later.
Multiple distress calls were made to the police as some groups clashed in two separate areas of Nagpur on Monday evening. It all happened during an agitation by a right-wing body for the removal of Aurangzeb’s tomb.
The violence left six people and 33 policemen injured, while 15 people were later arrested. Another 50 people were also detained.
Meanwhile, prohibitory orders and a curfew were imposed to avoid an escalation of the situation.
While the area witnessed clashes, a couple was seen locking up their house and leaving for a safer place around 1.20 am.
Chandrakant Kawde, another resident, who was working for Ramnavami Shobha Yatra said the mob burnt all his decoration articles and threw stones at the houses.
Some of the residents came out in their galleries and watched as a posse of cops led by senior officers marched into the lanes.
A resident of the Hansapuri area, speaking to PTI, said that the mob came to their home at around 10.30 pm and burnt their vehicles parked outside the house and a fire also broke out as they torched vehicles and properties.
“We doused the fire by putting water from the first floor of our house before the fire brigade came," she said.
Another resident from the same area said, “A team came here, their faces were hidden with scarves. They had sharp weapons, stickers and bottles in their hands. They started the ruckus, vandalised shops and pelted stones. They also torched vehicles."
A local shopkeeper from Nagpur’s violence-hit Hansapuri area said, “At 10.30 pm, I closed my shop. Suddenly, I saw people torching vehicles. When I tried to douse the fire, I was hit with a stone."
“My two vehicles and a few other vehicles parked nearby were torched," he added.
Another local said, “The police came after 1.5 hours of the entire incident. The people who did this first targeted CCTV cameras and damaged them."
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Union Minister from Nagpur, Nitin Gadkari, appealed for peace and harmony in the wake of the violence.
Police said rumours spread that the Quran was burnt during the agitation.
Videos of the Bajrang Dal demonstration quickly went viral on social media, leading to outrage among members of the Muslim community.
A complaint was lodged at Ganeshpeth police station in the evening alleging the burning of the holy book.
