At least five police personnel were injured after a clash broke out between locals and cops in an anti-encroachment drive carried out by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in the National Capital's Ramlila Maidan. The incident occurred when civic officials were bulldozing an area near the Faiz-e-Elahi Masjid at Turkman Gate following orders from the Delhi High Court.
Madhur Verma, Joint Commissioner of Police, Central Range, said during the demolition drive, a few miscreants attempted to create a disturbance by indulging in stone pelting. However, he said the situation is brought under control through measured and minimal use of force to restore normalcy.
The demolition began early hours of Wednesday at around 1 am and is still ongoing, said DCP Nidhin Valsan. He said MCD conducted the demolition as per the Delhi High Court's orders on the encroached land.
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He said stones were pelted at cops during the demolition drive at night. "We used minimal force to push back. Apart from that, the overall process was very smooth. Four to five officers suffered minor injuries... As soon as we get the CCTV camera footage, ground footage, and body camera footage, we will identify the miscreants and take legal action," said Valsan.
"About 25-30 people threw stones at police teams, in which five policemen sustained minor injuries. We had to use tear gas to control the situation. There was a banquet hall and a dispensary, which have been demolished. The drive was conducted in the night, keeping in mind that people should not face any difficulty," senior police officer Nidhin Valsan told the news agency PTI.
Deputy Commissioner (DC) of the City S.P. Zone (CSPZ), Vivek Agarwal, said that the action has been taken as per the court's order. He said 32 JCBs were used to carry out the demolition on 4,000 square metres. The demolition waste will be cleared by tomorrow. "No one was hurt during the stone pelting, police worked very well and controlled the situation," he told ANI.