Bareilly on the brink,officers shunted,Maulana released

In a bid to defuse the communal tension in Bareilly,parts of which have been under curfew for virtually 10 days...

In a bid to defuse the communal tension in Bareilly,parts of which have been under curfew for virtually 10 days,the police on Thursday filed a report before the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) court closing the investigation against Maulana Tauqir Raza and giving him a clean chit.

Raza,who was arrested this Monday,was released from the district jail late in the evening.

Maulana Raza had been arrested on charges of provoking mobs for indulging in violence. The arrest had added to the tension in the city,with a mob of about 3,000 locals gathering on Wednesday night in Baradari area raising anti-government slogans.

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Under pressure to bring the situation under control,the government in an abrupt move late on Wednesday night transferred Bareilly DIG M K Bashal and later shifted District Magistrate (DM) Ashish Goyal. ATS DIG Rajiv Sabharwal was flown in by a helicopter to take charge this morning. Pilibhit DM Anil Garg takes over from Goyal.

Sources at the Home Department said the transfer

orders were issued soon after information came in around 1 am of a 3,000-strong mob gathering,ready to clash any time.

ADG (Law & Order) Brij Lal said curfew continued to be in place in several areas of the city,while police have made precautionary arrest of 266 people from both communities.

The tension started following a dispute over change of route of a Barawafat procession on March 2,leading to clashes. The curfew in the four affected areas has been in place since then.