Statues of Dalit icon Bhimrao Ambedkar were found damaged in two villages in Firozabad and Etah districts today, police said.
In Firozabad, the right hand of the statue of Ambedkar installed at Bagichi in Nagla Nandi village was found damaged this morning, SP (rural) Mahendra Singh said.
The incident led to strong protests by the locals who demanded immediate replacement of the statue and arrest of the culprits, he said, adding that senior officials rushed to the spot and somehow pacified the protesters.
In another such incident in Etah, the thumb of Ambedkar's statue was found damaged in Shivrampur village in the Kotwali police station area this morning, police said.
Anti-social elements also damaged the boundary wall of the park where the statue was installed, police said, adding that the protesting and slogan-shouting locals were pacified and the repair work was on.
Investigations were on in both the cases and efforts were being made to nab the culprits, police said.
Similar incidents were earlier reported from Siddhartnagar and Allahabad after which Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath issued directives to the district magistrates and SPs to take steps for ensuring security of the statues installed in their respective districts and see that such cases are not repeated.
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