Muslim-Hindu riots in India

Clashes between Hindus and Muslims in a northern Indian town left one person dead and dozens injured, officials said today, hours after imposing a curfew to quell the violence.

The riots yesterday in Aligarh, about 50 kms southeast of New Delhi, were sparked by the shooting of a Hindu nationalist politician a day earlier.

The politician, O.P. Lala, later died of wounds inflicted in the shooting by unidentified assailants, and as news of his passing spread, angry mobs of Hindus - a minority in Aligarh – began looting Muslim shops and burning cars.

Mobs of Muslims soon poured into the streets to take on the rioting Hindus, and police used tear gas and opened fire to disperse the crowds, said Anil Sagar, an official in the town.

He said a man was shot dead in the violence and dozens were wounded, although it was not clear whether the death and injuries came at the hands of the police or rioters.

“Many shops were looted and vehicles were burnt down,” Sagar said by telephone from Aligarh, adding that authorities had imposed a curfew in the town and urged residents to stay indoors.

S.K. Aggarwal, a top home ministry official in Uttar Pradesh state, where Aligarh is located, said “riot police have been deployed in affected areas and security has been tightened”.

Relations between Hindus, more than 80% of India’s billion people, and Muslims, the country’s largest religious minority, have been largely peaceful since the partition of the subcontinent at independence from Britain in 1947. But there have been sporadic bouts of violence.