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Gujarat toll 252, violence spreads to UP, Rajasthan

Communal violence continued in Gujarat on Friday with 46 more deaths being reported, pushing the toll since Wednesday's Godhra incident to 252.

Thirty-three people belonging to a minority community were burnt alive by a mob returning from a funeral in a village near Godhra.

Twenty-two more were burnt alive by a mob in Sardarpur village in Mehsana district on Friday night.

Sixteen people died in police firing in various parts of the state.

The violence, meanwhile, spread to Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, but the nationwide bandh called by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in protest against the Godhra carnage passed off without any major incident.

Army has been deployed in Ahmedabad, which alone has accounted for over 115 deaths since Wednesday.

Armed groups fought pitched battles in Ahmedabad and some of its neighbouring towns. Over 250 houses, shops and kiosks have been burnt across the state in the last three days, officials said.

In Vadodra, three persons were killed in police firing in the curfew-bound areas of Makarpura and Sayajigunj police stations, taking the toll in the city to 11.

Defence Minister George Fernandes is camping in Ahmedabad to supervise army deployment.

One person was shot dead by unidentified assailants riding two-wheelers in Aligarh, UP. Another person was pulled out of a cycle rickshaw and stabbed fatally.

In Rajasthan, a 16-year-old boy was killed when police opened fire in Simalwara town to disperse two warring groups.

Curfew was imposed in Kishangarh town in Ajmer district after group clashes left several people injured.

PTI

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