Women Attacked By Mob After Dispute Over Cracker Stall, Stones Thrown At Cops

A minor disagreement over setting up a firecracker stall in Maharashtra's Kalyan escalated into a violent clash during Diwali. Women in the Mohane area were beaten, and stones were thrown at police officials while trying to control the crowd.

It reportedly began as a small argument between two groups but quickly spiralled into a large-scale attack. According to locals, a large group of men from the village, allegedly intoxicated, arrived in Lahuji Nagar armed with knives, swords, bamboo sticks, rods, and other weapons. They targeted women and even attacked people in front of the police officials trying to intervene.

"Suddenly, 60-70 boys from the village came here to Lahuji Nagar after drinking alcohol. They had knives, swords, bamboo sticks, rods, and everything. And when they saw women, they attacked them," said Sandhya Sathe, an injured woman and worker of the NCP Ajit Pawar faction.

Several people were injured as the group continued to throw stones at the police. A video from the scene showed Sathe bleeding and another man with bruises on his back.

"They hit my head with a rod," Sathe said. "They destroyed houses, hit someone in the chest with a stone, and struck me on the thigh. We tried to rescue people, but there were too many attackers. They were throwing stones and beating everyone. It was terrifying."

Authorities have launched an investigation against the perpetrators.

Earlier, on Diwali, a 35-year-old man was stabbed multiple times after a minor bike collision in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, around 3 am. CCTV footage shows a group surrounding and attacking him. He was rushed to the hospital but died during treatment. Police say the four attackers are still unidentified, and a manhunt is underway.