Villagers demanding access through army college in Pune baton charged

At least 50 people were injured as police carried out a baton charge and fired tear-gas to disperse around 2,000 villagers agitating for using a road passing through through the College of Military Engineering complex here on Thursday, officials said.

Villagers started gathering outside the gates of the CME in Dapodi in the morning and attempted to enter the premises through a road which provides a convenient link between Dapodi and Bopkhel villages, which are around 3 km apart.

Citing security concerns and trespassing, the CME suddenly closed the access road on Thursday day, compelling the angry villagers to take a 15 km detour.

The villagers raised slogans, pelted stones and demanded that they be permitted access to the road passing through the CME complex to enable them go to their workplace and return home.

When attempts by the police and CME security officials failed to pacify the villagers, police used force to disperse them.

At least 50 villagers sustained injuries in the incidents and were taken to local hospitals while another 100 were detained for creating a law and order situation.

The CME move to shut the road came following an order of the Bombay High Court, but the villagers now plan to challenge it in the Supreme Court.

The CME and villagers have been engaged in a battle over the access route since several years when the prestigious institution was set up on nearly 15 square kms property, acquiring lands from these and other nearby villages.