Saharanpur clashes: Muzaffarnagar police prevents Dalit outfit Bhim army from collecting donations

Muzaffarnagar (UP): The police in Muzaffarnagar removed a camp set up for collecting donations by Dalit outfit Bhim army, which has been under the scanner for its alleged role in the recent inter-caste clashes in adjoining Saharanpur. The workers of the fledgling group had organised a camp at a fair in Shukartal which was removed by the police, officials said. They group distributed pamphlets and appealed to people to participate in a ‘panchayat’ to be held by the outfit on 14 June in Ratheri village in Muzaffarnagar, said Superintendent of Police (Rural) Vinit Bhatnagar. [caption id=“attachment_3516759” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters[/caption] The outfit workers had organised the camp for money collection and on information the police rushed to the spot and removed the boxes used for collecting the sum, the SP said. Around a month ago an FIR was registered against Bhim army’s chief, Chandrasekhar, for his alleged role in caste-based violence in Saharanpur, but he is yet to be nabbed. 30-year-old Chandrasekhar, a lawyer belonging to the Chamar community, continues to reach out to his supporters through WhatsApp and Facebook videos. Earlier this week his brother was detained by the police while he, along with his mother, was on his way to meet the press in Saharanpur’s Budh Vihar. Chandrasekhar had recently organised a massive Dalit protest in Delhi against “atrocities” by the upper caste in Saharanpur, despite being underground to evade arrest for his alleged role in inflaming caste-based violence in the district. Some people from Muzaffarnagar had also reportedly participated in the protest in the national capital. In a video shared on Facebook, he purportedly remarked that the Bhim army was not a political outfit but representative of the Dalit community.