Lucknow shuts over Bush rallies, tensions high
Staff and agencies
04 March, 2006
Sat Mar 4, 2:58 AM ET
LUCKNOW, India - Lucknow shut down on Saturday after days of violent protests against U.S. President George W. Bush President George W. Bush in which at least four people died and which have raised tensions between Hindus and Muslims.
On Friday a protest erupted into a clash between Muslim and Hindus, with both sides using guns and knives. Police opened fire to disperse the riot. At least four people died of gunshot wounds, but it is not clear who shot them.
"The situation is well under control now," state home secretary Alok Sinha told Reuters.
It is the first time in more than a decade that communal violence has hit the city, where about 22 percent of people are Muslim compared with the national average of 13 percent.
Even the communal bloodshed that killed thousands across the country after Hindu radicals destroyed a mosque in the nearby town of Ayodhya in 1992 did not hit Lucknow.