A battle between villagers and cops in Jharkhand's Bokaro district on Monday injured many persons, including a few police officers, news agency PTI reported. According to authorities, the incident occurred roughly 140 km from here, outside the main gate of ESL Steel Limited, a Vedanta Group subsidiary. According to police, the villagers, who had been holding a dharna outside the company's gate since the morning in favour of its nine-point charter of demands, attempted to enter the company's premises but were stopped by security guards.
According to Siyaljori circle inspector Ravi Kumar Anand, when police were dispatched to handle the situation, people threw stones at them, injuring numerous policeman.
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He further stated that a number of people were injured when police used a minor lathi-charge to disperse them.
He stated that the injured have been admitted to the company's hospital and that their conditions are all stable. An FIR has also been filed in this matter, according to Anand.
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In a statement, ESL Steel Limited said, "While ESL, Vedanta maintains that issues should be resolved through talks, the locals have taken the law into their hands. They have indulged in stone pelting and assault on state police and our security with sticks and stones. In the process, many policemen have been injured. The locals have also damaged private vehicles and police vehicles outside the plant gate. We strongly condemn such acts of violence and remain open to a constructive dialogue," PTI reported.