Five killed as Nuh riots spill over to Gurugram

GURUGRAM: The communal violence that erupted in Haryana's Nuh district on Monday spread to parts of Gurugram on Tuesday as mobs set fire to and vandalised dozens of establishments in at least four of the city's neighbourhoods in the afternoon and evening, after a mosque in Sector 57 was vandalised and a cleric killed, taking the toll in the clashes to five

- Leena Dhankhar and Debashish Karmakar

Security forces fanned across Nuh, Palwal, Gurugram and Faridabad districts to snuff out further outbreaks and rein in tensions, with 45 first information reports (FIRS) registered, 70 suspects detained, and 100 more identified.

Mobile internet services remained suspended in Nuh, Manesar and Pataudi, while prohibitory orders were under effect in Faridabad, Palwal and Gurugram districts.

Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who chaired a high-level meeting to assess the situation, said the attacks were "pre-planned" and that a "conspiracy" was at the heart of the violence that has rocked the region.

Interviews with police officers and those involved in the violence - all spoke on condition of anonymity-paint a picture of a meticulously planned attack, raising questions as to why the police did not have a clue about what was going to go down despite hundreds of guns and people being mobilised.

Questions are also being raised on why the administration and the police did nothing even after Monu Manesar, a cow vigilante on the run from the law after his alleged involvement in the killing of two Muslim cattle traders in February, posted videos claiming he would be at an annual religious procession in Nuh.

Finally, questions are also being asked on the speed of response, with the violence spreading in under 24 hours - from Nuh to Gurugram, home to the headquarters of large Indian and multinational firms.

Khattar's deputy, Dushyant Chautala, meanwhile said the organisers of Monday's Shobha Yatra (a religious procession) -which was attacked by Muslim groups-did not properly inform the administration about the expected turnout.

Senior administration officials, however, insisted that the region's law and order was in check.