Communal tension grips another Bihar town

Communal tension gripped Bihar's Nawada town on Friday after a religious idol was found damaged, police said.

Nawada District Magistrate Kaushal Kumar said that as soon as the news spread, a protest erupted, leading to violent clashes between two communities.

Angry mobs damaged vehicles, torched shops and pelted stones at police.

However, the situation was soon brought under control, Kumar added.

Additional security forces have been deployed in the town to maintain law and order.

The Nawada parliamentary constituency is represented by Union Minister Giriraj Singh, who is known to be a vocal champion of Hinduvta politics.

Communal tension had also erupted in Nawada last year and in 2013.

In the past week, communal tension that first started in Aurangabad district during Ram Navami processions, spread to Samastipur, Munger, Nalanda, Sheikhpura and Gaya districts.

The opposition parties have slammed Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for what they called his "failure to handle the situation".

Leader of Opposition in the Bihar Assembly Tejashwi Yadav on Friday blamed RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat for the communal tension, saying he planned the trouble during his recent 14-day visit to the state.

Tejashwi, a Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and also former Deputy Chief Minister, alleged that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) cadres were given training for violence during Bhagwat's visit.

However, Union Minister Ram Kirpal Yadav refuted Tejashwi terming his allegations baseless.

In a related development on Friday, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker Anil Singh, who was arrested in connection with the recent communal clashes in Aurangabad town, managed to escape from police custody.

--IANS

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