Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel today appealed to people of Gujarat, which has been witnessing violence since last night, to cooperate in ensuring peace and harmony in the state even as he asked governing agencies to establish law and order at the earliest.
“I appeal to all the people of Gujarat to cooperate in ensuring peace and harmony. Law and order must be established at the earliest,” AICC general secretary Patel, who hails from Gujarat, said on micro-blogging site Twitter.
Patel is also the political secretary of Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
Army had to be called in to help control widespread violence sparked by quota agitation by Patel community in Gujarat which has claimed five lives even as curfew was clamped in major cities and towns in the state.
Notwithstanding appeal to people by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for maintenance of peace, police said Patel community members resorted to arson, stone pelting and vandalising public as well as private properties.
Curfew has been clamped in Ahmedabad, Surat, Rajkot, Mehasana, Patan, Palanpur, Unjha, Visnagar and Jamnagar.
Incidents of arson and stone-pelting were reported from many parts of Surat city when Patel community members came out in large numbers to “enforce” the bandh, police said. A mob of around 1,000 people burnt two warehouses of Surat Municipal Corporation in Udhna area of the city. Bikes, buses and vehicles were burnt at many places in the city, said Surat Police Control Room officials.