Sheopur, Apr 28 (PTI) The last rites of a Dalit man was stopped on a government plot by alleged encroachers belonging to the Rawat community in Sheopur in Madhya Pradesh on Monday, resulting in stone-pelting between two groups and a road blockade, a police official said.
The incident took place in Leelda village under Veerpur tehsil, he said.
Later, officials from the police and administration as well as public representatives talked to both groups, following which the last rites of Jagdish Jatav were performed.
“The Dalit man had died in an accident in Bengaluru some days ago. When his kin and community members were taking the body for last rites on a plot of government land encroached by some Rawat community members, the latter stopped them. The argument led to stone-pelting from both sides,” the official said.
After this, members of the Jatav community blocked the road by placing Jagdish’s body there, the official added.
The tehsildar of Veerpur and local police station in charge along with SDM and SDOP of Vijaypur reached the spot immediately and efforts were made by them to normalise the situation, Sheopur Superintendent of Police Virendra Jain said.
“In order to prevent any untoward incident, police force, including Reserve Inspector, was sent from the district headquarters and deployed there. The situation is being monitored,” the SP said.
Earlier, officials said the Jatav community’s crematorium was acquired by the railways, after which they were performing last rites on a plot of land in the possession of another community, which had triggered a deadlock.
A protester said the land belonged to the government and authorities had allowed them to conduct last rites here after the crematorium was taken over. However, men from the Rawat community had illegally occupied this plot, he alleged. PTI COR MAS BNM
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