DEHRADUN: Residents of Nandanagar town in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand‘s Garhwal region attacked shops belonging to members of the minority community on Sunday after allegations that a Muslim man, who worked in the town as a barber, had molested a local 14-yr-old girl.
The incident allegedly took place on Aug 22 but came to light on Saturday after the girl’s father lodged a complaint at Nandanagar police station.The next morning, residents of the town led by local traders held a procession, raising provocative slogans, during which they targeted and damaged at least 10 shops, mainly cosmetics and salons, when the cops dispersed them.
CM Pushkar Singh Dhami said, “Maintaining dignity and respect of a woman above all is our govt’s top priority. We condemn such incidents against the daughters of our state and would ensure the accused is handed stringent punishment as per the law. Such incidents cannot be tolerated in Devbhoomi.”
Lakshman Pandey, a local shopkeeper, while acknowledging that vandalism did take place, added that “one of the Muslim traders requested office-bearers of the town’s traders’ body to settle the matter to avoid further escalation.”
Police are yet to either take action against those involved in vandalism or apprehend the accused man who hails from UP. “We didn’t receive any complaint from traders whose shops were damaged so far, but appropriate action will be taken against those involved,” said sub-inspector Narendra Tomar. “The man who misbehaved with the minor fled the town after the incident and raids are on to nab him. Police teams have left for his home town Bijnor,” Tomar added.
A police officer in Nandanagar said, “The accused, Arif Khan, 19, used to work at a salon in the market for around a year. He had rented a room in the house where the girl lives with her family. On Aug 22, the girl’s father had gone out for some work. Khan discreetly entered the girl’s room and flashed at her before going back to his place. She informed her mother at home. Initially, the mother didn’t approach the cops or others in the neighbourhood fearing disrepute in society.”