In yet another incident of attack on Durga Puja, violent clashes broke out in Cuttack, Odisha, after a Muslim mob pelted stones on two Durga Puja idol immersion processions in the Hatipokhari and Darghabazar areas in the wee hours of Saturday (4th October).
The procession was heading to Debigara on the banks of the Kathajodi river for immersion. Six police personnel, including DCP Rishikesh Khilari, were injured in the attack.
As per reports, the incident happened around 1:30 am on Saturday when a Durga idol procession was being taken out by the Jhanjhirimangala Puja Committee through Hatipokhari for immersion.
As the procession was passing through the area, some Muslims objected to the music being played and started pelting stones and hurling glass bottles at the procession. DCP Rishikesh Khilari sustained an eye injury in the attack. Several nearby shops and vehicles parked by the roadside were also damaged in the attack. As a result, the procession had to be halted midway.
People participating in the procession staged a sit-in protest against the stone pelting. Vehicles carrying around 50 idols of different Durga pujas of various communities remained stuck for hours. Additional security was called and deployed to take control of the situation.
Some reports say that another Durga idol procession also came under a similar attack near the Darghabazar police station. As the Durga idol procession was halted in the Hatipokhari area, the Rausapatna Durgakali procession overtook it and reached near Darghabazar police station, where it was attacked. The people participating in the procession were attacked by locals.
Like every year, the Navaratri Garba festivities and Durga processions were targeted by Islamic fundamentalists. In several Garba pandals, Muslim men were caught taking entry by hiding their identity. Incidents of stone-pelting, vandalism and desecration at Durga processions and pandals also came to light in different states, including Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
