Curfew in Indian towns after caste riots leave four dead

INDIA: Four towns in western India were under curfew Friday and over 1,500 people were arrested as authorities sought to avert more violence after riots by low-caste Hindus claimed four lives.

Dozens of people were also injured Thursday when low-caste Hindus clashed with police, torched two trains and damaged more than 100 buses in western Maharashtra state after a statue of their leader was vandalised.

"We arrested 1,500 people (Thursday) for the violence. Some were caught red-handed rioting while others were arrested as a preventive measure," state police chief P.S. Pasricha said.

The curfew was imposed late Thursday in four towns in Maharashtra state of which India's financial hub, Mumbai, is the capital.

There were no reports of violence Friday and police said they would consider lifting the curfew later in the day.

Police also arrested the man who allegedly damaged the statue of the late B.R. Ambedkar a political leader and scholar who fought for the rights of low-caste Hindus in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

"We arrested a man called Arun Balmiki. He was drunk when he pelted stones at the statue, breaking an arm and damaging its head. He has confessed to the crime," P.C. Meena, police chief of Kanpur city, told AFP.

The Maharashtra police have also asked the state government to declare a holiday next Wednesday, because it marks Ambedkar's death anniversary, to avert any fresh violence.

"We are taking precautionary steps to maintain order in Mumbai on December 6, when thousands of Ambedkar's followers will gather in the city for the leader's death anniversary," deputy chief minister Patil said. Lower castes in India make up two-thirds of India's one-billion-plus population, making them an important voting bloc.

Ambedkar, one of the key authors of India's constitution, fought for equal rights for the group during and after the freedom movement from British colonial rule, which ended in 1947.

The Dalits have faced discrimination in employment, housing and education for centuries from upper caste members, many of whom hold positions of authority in government and business.

Earlier Rampaging mobs set two passenger trains on fire, damaged more than 100 state-run buses and clashed with police in several cities and towns of Maharashtra state, officials said.

"The protestors first asked passengers to alight from the Deccan Queen and then set it on fire," Deputy Chief Minister R. R. Patil told reporters.

He said another train was similarly torched. Police put the number of people injured at 60 but ambulance personnel and volunteers said more than 150 were injured in the rioting.

He also said there was sporadic street violence Thursday in Mumbai, the country's financial capital, related to the incident.

Schools and shops closed as mobs spread in the Mumbai suburb of Thane, and police used steel-tipped batons and fired teargas to disperse them in the suburb as well as in the city, police said.

MUMBAI, Friday, AFP