Violence erupts after locals clash with police during anti-encroachment drive in Agra

Twenty persons, including several police officials, were injured in a clash between the police and members of a religious sect in Uttar Pradesh’s Agra on Sunday, the Hindustan Times reported.

The violence took place during an anti-encroachment drive by the Uttar Pradesh government. The authorities alleged that members of the Radhasoami Satsang Sabha – a religious group that has followers among Hindus and Sikhs – encroached upon land belonging to the state’s revenue department in the Dayalbagh area.

The religious group had been given time until Friday to vacate the land, according to India Today.

On Saturday, city officials demolished gates and allegedly illegal structures on the land in the presence of the police. However, members of the sect again erected the gates after the police left, according to the Hindustan Times.