Jahangirpuri violence: Delhi police chief says there is no bid to plant saffron flag on mosque

New Delhi, April 18 (IANS): There is no evidence for the theory that an attempt to plant saffron flags in a mosque led to violence in Delhi’s Jahangirpuri, but was “a minor argument which later took the form of violence massive,” Delhi Police Commissioner Rakesh Asthana said on Monday.

“People who say someone tried to plant a flag there… that’s not true,” he said at a press briefing on communal violence in Jahangirpuri.

He said it is too early to tell what the reason for the provocation was. “It’s part of the investigation. I can’t tell you anything because the investigation is not over yet,” he said.

Asked again about the planting of the saffron flag, Asthana said, “It’s not fair. There was no such thing.”

However, Delhi State Secretary General of Jamiat-Ulema-e-Hind, Abdul Raziq, who visited the site of the violence with a delegation on Sunday, told IANS that when the third procession passed near the mosque, disbelievers attempted to enter and place a “saffron flag” at the door of the mosque.

Asthana also said that at the time of the violence, the police were present in sufficient numbers and initially even managed to separate the two groups.

“Nine people, including 8 police officers, were injured in the clashes. This shows that the police did their job effectively, which prevented any injury to the public,” he added.