RANCHI: Three Kashmiri traders doing business in Ranchi were allegedly beaten up on Saturday after being waylaid on their way to work and asked to chant “Jai Shri Ram” and “Pakistan Murdabad”.
Based on a complaint, the police arrested three out of the 20 to 25 people accused of targeting the traders near Kadru bridge in Ranchi’s Doranda area. This is the second time in just over a fortnight that Kashmiris have been attacked in the same area. On November 11, two youths from J&K had been allegedly assaulted there, leading to the arrest of a resident.
Rayaz Ahmad Wani, one of the complainants, said his colleagues Tanvir Ahmad Shah and Sartaj Ahmad Shah were ferrying woollen clothes by autorickshaw while he was on a two-wheeler when a “mob” surrounded them and demanded that they chant the slogans given to them.
“I was hit on the head with a rod. Had I not been wearing a helmet, I might have been killed,” he said. “They also thrashed my colleagues and damaged my scooter.”
The trio arrested for the attack were identified as Deepak Jha, Tarun Kumar and Arvind Kumar. Sadar DSP Prabhat Ranjan Barwar, who visited the area later, said the administration would prepare lists of Kashmiri traders living in various parts of the city and hand these over to the respective police stations to ensure their security. “A meeting of elected representatives, peace committee members and social activists will be held to raise awareness.”