Curfew in Punjab town after rumours of Quran burning

CHANDIGARH - Curfew was imposed in Punjab’s Malerkotla town Monday after the property of a church was set on fire by a mob following rumours that the Quran has been burnt in the US. Religious leaders appealed for peace, prompting local authorities to say that curfew could be relaxed for a few hours in the evening.

Administration officials in Sangrur district’s Malerkotla town, about 150 km from here, said curfew would be relaxed from 5 p.m. Monday for two-three hours.

Religious leaders from the Muslim and Christian communities met with district administration officials Monday and appealed to people to maintain calm. They said no heed should be paid to rumours about burning of the Quran in the US.

Violence erupted late Sunday after a rumour that the Quran had been burnt in Michigan, US. Soon, a mob gathered and proceeded to the town’s only church, shouting slogans against the US government. The mob then set furniture of the church on fire before the police intervened.

Situation in the town remained tense throughout the night and Punjab Police rushed reinforcements.

Police officials said the rumour about the desecration of the holy book started following the recent controversy in the US after a pastor in Florida threatened to burn copies of the Quran on the anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.

Malerkotla town has a population of nearly 110,000, over 55 percent of them being Muslims. Formerly a princely state, where not even a single incident of violence was reported during the partition of India in 1947, the town is now part of Sangrur district.

There was also tension in Punjab’s industrial hub of Ludhiana, 110 km from here, when members of the Muslim and Christian communities gathered following the rumours of Quran burning in the US. However, district administration officials said efforts were on to calm the situation.