Another incident of violence has transpired hours before Uttar Pradesh’s Bijnor district went into polls today. A group of Muslim men reportedly shot at three Dalit men over an argument between the two groups. One Bulaki Singh succumbed to his injuries while the other two are said to be critical. The incident occurred on Sunday night.

Superintendent of Police, SP Tyagi said that the CCTV footage recovered from the spot where the incident transpired, revealed the identity of three accused, namely Rihan, Asif and Rafiq. They are residents of Raza Colony in the area, confirmed SP Tyagi. The three have been arrested and during interrogation admitted being a part of the crime. The police are in the lookout for rest of the accused.

The incident took place when Bulaki Singh(55), Mahavir Singh(40), and Firozi Singh(25), residents of the Mukapurpur village which falls under Badhapur police station, went to Badhapur to shop for household items late on Sunday. While returning to their village they ran across the group of Asif, Rihan, and Rafiq who were in their car which was parked near Badhapur-Kunjeta Road.

The group allegedly got into an argument with the three Dalit men after the former asked the latter the way to Rampur. During the tiff, one of the men in the car allegedly slapped Firozi Singh. On resenting the argument escalated. One of the men from the group shot at the three Dalit men who were on their bikes. While Bulaki died on the spot, Mahavir and Firozi, are said to be critical.

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Bulaki Singh’s son, Somapal has registered a complaint against the accused. The police have been investigating the matter closely. Meanwhile, the car used in the murder has been recovered from Delhi.

As per the reports, the security in the area has been tightened keeping today’s elections in mind as there are fears of communal tensions flaring. Local politicians have also visited the families of the victims. Police officials have stated that though the incident was not political, fearing communal clashes, police forces have been deployed in the area.

Recently, there have been many incidents of violence on Dalits with Muslims as perpetrators.

An incident of violence between Dalits and Muslims had come to light in Durveshpur village of Sardhana, Uttar Pradesh on February 10, 2019. According to a report by Amar Ujala, a minor conflict between some people belonging to the Dalit and the Muslim communities escalated into communal violence. People from both the communities came face to face and heavy stone pelting and firing took place.

A similar incident of violence between Dalits and the Muslims was reported recently in Agra.

Meanwhile, Meerut experienced similar clashes at the beginning of the year after some people of the Muslim community had beaten up a Dalit boy when he demanded his wages.