The communal violence in northeast Delhi last week has claimed 44 lives, officials said on Thursday as Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal and minister Gopal Rai visited the riot-affected areas and took stock of the situation there.
Central Board Secondary Education (CBSE) officials said over 98 per cent attendance was recorded in class 12 accountancy exam in the riot-hit areas. On Wednesday, 97.8 per cent attendance was recorded in the class 10 board exam for the science paper.
Special parent-teacher meetings were held in government and aided schools in the violence-hit areas for the second consecutive day. At one such meeting, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia interacted with parents and students affected in the communal clashes to encourage the pupils start attending schools again.
Paramilitary forces have been conducting flag marches and holding meetings with the locals in Jaffrabad, Maujpur, Babarpur, Chand Bagh, Shiv Vihar, Bhajanpura, Yamuna Vihar and Mustafabad where the violence, that sparked from protests over the amended Citizenship Act, was the most intense.
The police said it has registered 654 cases in connection with the riots and 1,820 people have been either detained or arrested so far.
Northeast Delhi Deputy Commissioner Shashi Kaushal said, "The death toll stands at 44. We are still waiting for figures from the police."
Later, the police also confirmed the death toll. Additional PRO of Delhi Police Anil Mittal said, "The death toll in the northeast Delhi violence stands at 44."