Permission denied for June 15 Mahapanchayat in Uttarkhand's Purola; Section 144 imposed

Uttarkashi (Uttarakhand) [India], June 14 : The Uttarkashi district administration on Wednesday refused permission for a Mahapanchayat proposed to be held on June 15 in Uttarakhand's Purola town, which has been witnessing communal tensions over an alleged attempt to abduct a minor girl last month.

The district administration has also imposed Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which prohibits the gathering of four or more people in a specified area, District Magistrate of Uttarkashi Abhishek Rohilla said.

The Mahapanchayat was called by the Purola Pradhan Sangathan and has received support from the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, the Bajrang Dal among others. The situation in Purola has been tense after two men were caught in an alleged attempt to elope with a minor girl from Purola last month.

District Magistrate of Uttarkashi Abhishek Rohilla said, "The permission for the proposed mahapanchayat to be held on June 15 has been denied."

Speaking exclusively to ANI, Uttarakhand, Director General of Police (DGP), Ashok Kumar said that no one will be given permission to break the law, over the proposed mahapanchayat.

Uttarkashi town in the State recently witnessed tensions over an alleged abduction attempt in the month of May this year of a 14-year-old girl by two men, one of whom was from a minority community, police said. Both men were subsequently arrested on May 27.

District Magistrate Abhishek Rohilla and Superintendant of Police Arpan Yaduvanshi had arrived in Purola on Monday, following tensions in the area. After meeting with local public representatives, the officials had appealed to maintain harmony and peace.

During the meeting locals from a particular community told officials that certain posters with threats to them were put up in the Purola town and since then they have been living in an atmosphere of fear.

District Magistrate Abhishek Ruhela appealed to both communities to maintain peace and not to be misled by anyone. He also appealed to open community special shops with the consent of the representatives of the Board of Trade.

On June 9, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami held a high-level meeting in the secretariat and said that the "cases of love jihad that are coming up will be strictly investigated".

State DGP Ashok Kumar, Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) V Murugesan and officers of the Intelligence Department were present in the meeting.

Murugesan said on Monday that strict action will be taken against those taking the law into their hands.

"Recently there have been incidents of elopement in Uttarkashi, Vikas Nagar and other areas. Local people are agitating. FIRs were registered. Police are doing their duty to establish peace. Whoever breaks the law, strict legal actions will be taken against them. An investigation is underway," he said.

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