16 juveniles arrested for stone pelting

Mumbai: The Mumbai pice’s probe into the rioting that took place during Wednesday’s state wide bandh has revealed that many of the accused had come from outside Mumbai. The police also arrested 16 juveniles, who allegedly pelted stones during the rioting in Govandi police station, which saw maximum police injuries.

The police had registered 16 cases on Wednesday and nine on Tuesday, taking the total number of cases to 25. They have detained 300 persons, of which 50have been arrested based on their role in the riots. They are also viewing CCTV footage to identify the miscreants and their exact role. Among the 300 detained, 50 have been formally arrested, which includes the 16 juveniles.

Police said that all the apprehended juveniles were nabbed for stone pelting and rioting in the jurisdiction of the Govandi police station, where around 50 policemen and officers of Powai, Govandi and some other stations were injured. All the arrests have beenmade from Ghatla village area in Chembur, which witnessed maximum rampage after Powai, officials said.

The investigators have also invoked attempt to murder charge in cases registered by the Powai, Chembur and Govandi police stations, senior officials said. On the basis of its preliminary probe, police suspects that many of the aggressive protesters featured people, who were allegedly assaulted during the attack on the bicentennial anniversary of the Bhima-Koregaon battle in Pune on January 1. Some are also suspected to be those displaced by the demolition drive on hutments around the Tansa pipeline.

According to the police, there were many political outfits that were part of the rioting. It will also probe into some of the video clips of juveniles, who were tutored to make inflammatory statements, based on provisions of the Juvenile Justice Act. Police are scanning the CCTV  footage of places where violent protests broke out to identify more miscreants.