A clash broke out between people belonging to two separate communities outside a gurudwara here following which a case was registered against more than 70 persons for rioting and arson, the police said today. Additional Superintendent of Police (rural) Subhash Chandra Shakya said that tension erupted yesterday when a 14-year-old girl was putting up a cart to sell ‘rakhis’ outside a gurudwara in Banda area of the district and the watchman objected to it.

The watchman of the gurudwara also allegedly hit the girl with a stick on her leg, police said. As the news spread, Hindus and Sikhs reached the area and indulged in stone pelting, they said.

Superintendent of Police, Shahjahanpur S Chinappa said, “A case has been registered against more than 70 persons from both sides under various sections of the IPC for rioting, arson, damaging public property. A heavy police deployment has been made in the area.”

A meeting of the two sides has been called by District Magistrate Amrit Tripathi so as to establish peace in the area, he said. “One police vehicle and two other vehicles have been damaged due to stone pelting,” Sub-divisional Magistrate Satyapriye Singh had said yesterday.

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