Haryana Violence Accused Caught By Cops After A Chase

Bittu Bajrangi, a Bajrang Dal member and cow vigilante from Haryana, has been arrested in connection with the communal violence that took place last month in Nuh, Gurugram and other areas of the state. There are allegations that provocative comments by him and fellow Bajrang Dal activist Monu Manesar had triggered the violence.

Bittu Bajrangi — accused in several other cases — was caught from near his house nearly 20 days after violence broke out.  The 18-hour communal clash had claimed five lives and left at least 70 people injured, spreading from Nuh to Gurugram and upto Badshahpur, 40 km away.

Bittu Bajrangi alias Raj Kumar, is a fruit and vegetables trader at the Gazipur market and Dabua maket in Faridabad. A Bajrang Dal member, the 45-year-old has been running a cow vigilante group for the last three years. Last one month alone, he was booked in three cases of inciting religious sentiments.

After the Nuh violence, a case was registered against the Goraksha Bajrang Force chief in Faridabad.

Now CCTV footage from Haryana’s Faridabad showed plainclothes policemen catching him after a long chase. He has been accused of rioting, violence, threatening, obstructing government work, stopping a government officer from duty and causing harm with a deadly weapon.

Speaking of how the violence started during a procession of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Chaudhary Aftab, the MLA from Nuh, had said, “People were already angry with the statements of Monu Manesar, Bittu Bajrangi and rumours spread that Monu had come to Manesar… so the violence started”.