Six burnt alive in Andhra Pradesh; CBI probe ordered

Hyderabad, Oct 12 (IANS) The communal riots in Andhra Pradesh's Adilabad district took a turn for the worse Sunday as six members of a family, including a two-year-old child, were burnt alive in their house, prompting the state government to announce a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the incident.

A group of unidentified people torched the house, killing all its six inmates, including three children and a woman, police said. The attack took place at Vatoli village, 10 km from Bhainsa town, where four people were killed in communal violence Friday.

The police said the incident occurred around 3 a.m. The inmates, who were fast asleep, were caught in flames and could not escape as the rioters had locked the house from outside before setting it afire.

The victims have been identified as Mahmood Khan, a tailor, his wife Safia Begum, their daughter Rizwana and three children Naoman, Arsalan, and Tuba Falak. Falak was only two-years old.

Fearing attacks by rioters, about 30 families from Vatoli village had shifted to Bhainsa after Friday's violence. However, two families including that of Khan stayed back, the villagers said.

The attackers also torched two shops in the village.

The incident triggered fresh tension in Bhainsa, about 275 km from here, which had witnessed clashes between members of two communities in which four people were killed Friday. The riots broke out during the immersion of Durga idols.

Indefinite curfew continued Sunday in Bhanisa. Tension also prevailed in Nirmal and Adilabad towns and police have imposed prohibitory orders.

Meanwhile, Home Minister K. Jana Reddy, who rushed to Vatoli village along with state police chief S.S.P. Yadav, visited the scene of the ghastly crime. He said a CBI probe would be conducted into the incidents in Bhanisa and Vatoli.

Assured more security, he said personnel of Rapid Action Force (RAF) would be deployed in the area.

Hyderabad MP and Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi, who had rushed to the village earlier in the day, strongly protested against the incident.

There was a heated argument between the home minister and Owaisi, who alleged that the incident occurred because of the abject failure of the police in providing security to the minority community in remote villages.