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Death toll rises to 9 in violence in western Indian state

Xinhua, August 27, 2015 Adjust font size:

The death toll in the violence in the western Indian state of Gujarat has risen to nine on Thursday, said local media.

The Patel community, which was protesting caste quota policies of the government, Thursday continued its agitation demanding special caste status and reservation benefits.

The violence was triggered on Tuesday night by the brief arrest of Hardik Patel, the 22-year-old leader of the agitation.

Patel called for a state bandh or strike on Tuesday during which over 100 buses were torched and many public and private properties vandalized.

Six people were killed in police firing and two in the rioting over the past two days. One succumbed to injuries on Thursday, said local daily The Hindu.

The Indian army was called in on Wednesday to control the situation. Soldiers staged flag marches in Ahmedabad, the state capital, and Surat, the second largest city of Gujarat on Thursday morning, to restore confidence of the public in the government capability to maintain law and order.

Schools and colleges in the state have been shut since Tuesday while mobile internet services have been suspended since Wednesday.

Meanwhile, over 50 trains have been cancelled or diverted as mobs damaged tracks at several places, said The Hindu daily.

At least 100 people were also injured in violence, mainly in group clashes and stone-pelting incidents, in the state from where Prime Minister Narendra Modi hails.

As many as 133 companies of the Indian Army, Central Reserve Police Force, State Reserve Police Force, Rapid Action Force and Border Security Force besides Gujarat Police were engaged in controlling violent mobs in various cities including Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Morbi, Vadodara, Mehsana and Banaskantha. Endi