When about six maulvis gathered around the Panch Peer Kabristan -- a Muslim graveyard -- near Quarter Gate Mosque to call for prayers, the men in uniform sitting in the under-construction police outpost nearby felt alarmed.
The Muslim religious leaders are dead against the outpost. The community feels the outpost has already usurped 30 foot of land that belongs to the graveyard. They feel the construction is illegal -- that the police land was meant for the residence of senior officers, not for an outpost.
They also feel the outpost is unnecessary. There is another police outpost 300 meters from the graveyard.
The police say the old outpost is in a low-lying area, which gets water-logged during the monsoons. Hence the need for a new construction near the graveyard, which is on higher ground. And, they add, since the land belongs to the police, they can carry out any construction they want.
About 24 policemen were guarding the construction, the first floor of which has been built.
There was an altercation between the police and the maulvis, the details of which are different, depending on who you talk to.
The locals say one of the policemen slapped a maulvi. The police vehemently deny any such thing happened.
What followed the argument was that about 3,000 people gathered and started throwing stones at the policemen. The police fired at the mob. Two people -- Mohammed Ramzan and Abdul Malik -- were killed and more than 12 injured.
The same night, two policemen on patrol -- Ramesh Jagtap and Bala Gangurde -- were stabbed to death and their bodies set on fire.
Since then, the maulvis have disappeared and fear has gripped the locality.
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