India steps up security as fresh violence at riots site kills four
Uttar Pradesh state government deploys around 500 paramilitary troops to Muzaffarnagar
India stepped up security on Thursday after a fresh outbreak of violence killed four people in the same region hit by deadly communal clashes last month, a police officer said.
The villagers were killed overnight close to Muzaffarnagar, 105 kilometres northeast of capital New Delhi, where mobs last month burnt houses during Muslim-Hindu riots that left 50 people dead and forced hundreds to flee.
The Uttar Pradesh state government deployed around 500 paramilitary troops to Muzaffarnagar early on Thursday as a precaution, while eight people were arrested in the overnight violence, the officer said.
“Last night, four people died in nearby villages, including a woman. They were separate incidents,” the senior district police official said on the condition of anonymity.
“It seems like it is more of a domestic dispute. We are probing the matter.”
It is unclear whether the latest violence is liked to communal tensions in and around Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh state, which has a history of religious and caste-based clashes.