Violence in south Delhi as police, locals clash

Violence erupted on Sunday evening in a south Delhi neighbourhood as local residents clashed with police on the issue of closing the gate of a religious structure located on a disputed site.

The violence erupted around 6 p.m. in the Jorbagh area after locals alleged that the gate of the religious structure had been closed by authorities and tried to open it, but were prevented from doing so by police.

The residents alleged that police used force and lobbed teargas shells to disperse the protesters while police denied the allegations.

Senior Delhi police officers, including Joint Commissioner of Police (Southern Range) Amulya Patnaik and Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Chhaya Sharma rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control with the help of local elders.

A large number of police personnel, as also BSF and CRPF troopers, have been deployed in the locality to maintain law and order.

According to officials, the religious structure is located at a disputed place regarding which a case is pending in the Delhi High Court.