Tension prevailed in Gujarat's Surat district after some minors threw stones at a Ganesh pandal in the early hours of Monday.
The incident happened in the Sayedpura area of the city, following which thousands of locals reached a local police unit, demanding action against the accused.
Upon receiving an alert about the incident, heavy police force reached the spot to bring the situation under control. Police also resorted to a lathi charge and used tear gas to manage the angry crowd.
Speaking to news agency ANI, Surat Police Commissioner Anupam Gehlot said, "Some children pelted stones at a Ganesh pandal after which a clash broke out. The police immediately took away those children from there... Police were immediately deployed in the area. Lathi charge was done in all the areas where it was needed and tear gas was used... All the accused who were involved in the peace disturbance are being arrested. There are around 1,000 police personnel deployed all around. And the public is also here ..."
At around 2.30 am, Gujarat Home Minister Harsh Sanghavi and local BJP MLA Kanti Balar also visited the spot and spoke to the locals to reduce tensions in the area.
According to Sanghavi, six minors, who allegedly threw stones at the Ganesh pandal were detained by the police. In addition, 27 other people were also arrested by the police who allegedly encouraged the stone pelting.
Sharing details about the police action, Sanghavi added that CCTV footage of the area was scanned to arrest the other accused.
"As I promised, we have caught the stone-pelters before sunrise! 6:30 am #Surat Update Here are the details: 27 stone-pelters arrested, CCTV, video visuals, drone visuals, and other technical surveillance work is still ongoing. Strict action will be taken against all accused. Our teams have worked whole night & yet to identify the stone-pelters and bring them to justice. Jai Ganesh!!," Sanghavi said in a post on X.
