Tension prevailed in Haryana's Mewat after stones were pelted on Brij Mandal Jalabhishek Religious Mewat Yatra on Monday. The religious procession in Nuh saw cars set on fire and stones thrown at them, according to the police. To thin out crowds, police fired tear gas shells. The region was tense, and the entire district was placed under a prohibitory order that forbade public gatherings.

According to the police, a religious procession, 'Brij Mandal Jalabhishek Yatra', which was flagged off from Gurugram’s Civil Lines by BJP district president Gargi Kakkar, was stopped by a group of men near Khedla Mod in Nuh.

"Stones were pelted at the procession, and at least four cars were set on fire," the official said.

According to police, a home guard was shot dead and about a dozen policemen were injured in the incident.

Mobile internet services were suspended till Wednesday to contain the "intense communal tension", the Haryana government said.

“In order to stop the spread of misinformation and rumours through various social media platforms, for facilitation and mobilisation of mobs of agitators who can cause serious loss of life and damage to public and private properties by indulging in arson or vandalism and other types of violent activities, I, Home Secretary, Haryana do hereby order the suspension of the mobile internet services in the jurisdiction of district Nuh in the state of Haryana and shall be in force w.e.f. 31.07.2023 (16:00hrs) to 02.08.2023 (23:59 hrs),” the order read.

Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said the government has dispatched additional forces from neighbouring districts. "We are also trying to send forces by helicopter," he told the news agency PTI.

He further said that he spoke to the Director General of Police, Additional Chief Secretary, and other senior officials over the incident.

According to some claims, there were reports that Monu Manesar, a cow vigilante wanted in the murder of two Muslim men in Rajasthan, was supposed to join the procession. As per the news report published by The Pamphlet, members of the Muslim community resorted to stone pelting and attacked the procession. The attack was pre-planned and the location of the procession was live-tweeted even as miscreants were prepared to stoke communal tensions.

The police later carried out a flag march to maintain law and order in the region. “The situation in the area is stable," Nuh SHO Hukam Singh told PTI.

Image source: Hindustan Times