Key accused’s bungalow in Chhatarpur bulldozed

Bhopal: The palatial bungalow of the main accused in Wednesday’s attack on a police station in Madhya Pradesh’s Chhatarpur district headquarters was razed by the local administration on Thursday.

Haji Sahajad Ali, whose 20,000 sq ft house was razed by the local administration, however, fled the spot with his family when the demolition team and police reached the spot, police said.

The illegal constructions have been removed, a senior police official said.

A mob comprising members of a particular community reached the Kotwali police station in the district headquarters of Chhattisgarh late on Wednesday night to submit a memorandum against Mahant Ramgiri Maharaj for his alleged objectionable remarks targeting a religion.

Some of the criminals suddenly started throwing stones at the police when the station officer came out to receive the memorandum.

Three police officers were injured in the incident.

Police quickly moved in to disperse the rioters and calm the situation when the miscreants started pelting stones at the police station, Chhatarpur district superintendent of police Agam Jain said on Thursday.

Three or four main suspects involved in the stone-throwing incident have been identified and their illegal constructions are being removed, he said.

An FIR has been registered against more than 150 people, he added.

According to police, 40 people have so far been arrested for questioning in connection with the incident.

Speaking to X, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav termed Wednesday’s incident in which three policemen were injured in stone pelting by miscreants as unfortunate and warned that strict action would be taken against the culprits.

“Madhya Pradesh is a peaceful state and any attempt to break law and order in a planned manner will not be tolerated,” he said.

In a related development, Congress MP Imran Pratapgari criticised the state government for demolishing Ali’s house, alleging that BJP governments in states are looking for excuses to raze the houses of Muslims.

Madhya Pradesh BJP unit president Vishnu Dutt Sharma, however, defended the police action, saying the miscreants had tried to unleash terror by attacking the police station.

He said the action taken against the accused was taken in accordance with the law.