Minor dispute triggers communal tension in Pune; mob pelts stones at cops

A midnight clash between two communities in Pune's Kondhwa area was triggered by a minor dispute among teenagers, with police registering a case and detaining several individuals.

A minor dispute among teenagers triggered a midnight clash between groups belonging to two communities in Pune, with a mob hurling stones at police teams attempting to defuse the tension.

While no one was injured in the melee that occurred in the Kondhwa area on the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday, the police have registered a case and detained a few persons as a probe has been initiated to identify those involved in the violence, an official said.

''The incident took place between 11 pm and 2 am when a petty fight broke out between a few teenage boys in a housing society in Kondhwa. The dispute quickly escalated, as adults from two communities got involved,'' a senior official from Pune police said.

Sensing a possible law and order situation, police rushed to the spot and tried to intervene, but stones were hurled at cops, he said.

Additional force was deployed to bring the situation under control, he said.

A video of the incident, which surfaced on social media, showed people gathered near the Kondhwa police station and blocking traffic by sitting on the road.