Two groups clash over Kanwar Yatra in Greater Noida village, 11 injured

Nearly a dozen people were injured today after a clash broke out between two groups at a village in Greater Noida here over the conduct of the Kanwar pilgrimage, police said.

The incident took place this evening in Panchayatan village when the two groups, from the same community, indulged in violence and brickbats, they said.

"The two groups had together carried out the Kanwar last year but this year there was some conflict between them over donation collections in the village and the bhandara (community feast), Superintendent of Police, Noida Rural, Aashish Shrivastava said.

He said when one of the groups decided to take out their own separate kanwar yatra and held a prayer at a village temple, members of the other side arrived there and heated arguments ensued.

Soon both sides engaged in stick fights and brickbats, resulting in injuries to members of both parties, he said.

The injured were taken to a hospital for treatment, he added.

The SP said that the police were in the process of filing complaints based on inputs from both parties.

Greater Noida Police Station House Officer Dharmendra Sharma said six people from one group and five from the other side were injured in the clash.

As a precautionary measure security was stepped up in Panchayatan and some senior police officials visited it, the SHO, who was present in the village tonight, told PTI.

Thousands of Kanwarias (devotees of Lord Shiva) from across the country carry out the 'kanwar yatra' an annual pilgrimage during the auspicious Hindu month 'Shraavana'.

Hindu pilgrimage places including Sultanganj in Bihar, Haridwar, Gangotri and Gaumukh in Uttarakhand, Kashi Vishwanath temple in Varanasi witness huge crowds of Kanwarias from different states.

They carry 'Kanwars' on their shoulders, wearing saffron dresses and walk hundreds of miles barefoot to bathe the 'Shivaling'. The devotees go a long way to fetch 'Ganga Jal' to offer it to Lord Shiva.