A day after four people were killed and 30 injured in clashes after a dargah was demolished in Vadodara, the city continues to remain tense. On monday, as part of their encroachment drive, the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) demolished a dargah in the Mandvi area. The dargah is believed to be a 300-year-old mazaar of Chisti Rashid-ud-din.

It is reported that earlier some leaders had requested the municipal commissioner not to demolish the mausoleum. The commissioner refused and said that even temples had been demolished in the drive to decongest the city. "If anything is placed wrongly as per the master plan, we would ensure that it is removed. Many temples that were obstructing the traffic have been removed as well," Deepak Swaroop, Police Commissioner, Vadodara is reported to have said.

"There were temples that were very ancient but had to be removed as they were obstructing the traffic. In many places, people have removed the temples on their own," he added.

Hundreds of Muslims congregated at the mazaar on monday and started pelting stones. The police immediately declared curfew in the old city areas. Tension escalated as riots broke out between the mob and the police. Soon, the battles turned into a communal skirmish. Initially, the police used lathicharges to disperse the mob. But as things spun out of control, the police lobbed teargas shells and fired at the mob. The riots soon spread to old city areas such as Fatehpura, Hathikhana, Ajwa Road, Macchi Pith and Nyay Mandir.

One person was killed in police firing and two injured in clashes at 2 am, on Tuesday morning, in the Moti Vohrawaad area. The death toll in the violence has now gone up to five.

The mob ignored the curfew and resumed pelting stones on Tuesday morning in the Fatehpura Charrasta area.

Today, curfew will be relaxed for two hours in four of the six police station areas of Vadodara.

Further, curfew will be relaxed in the afternoon in Raopura and Panigate areas and for two hours in the evening at Wadi and Karelibaug according to the Police. Security has been tightened and Personnel of the Rapid Action Force have been patrolling streets in the affected areas.

The Union Minister of State for Home Sriprakash Jaiswal arrived in Vadodara on Monday evening and has requested the people of Vadodara to help establish peace.

In the meantime, the Centre has asked the Gujarat government to take all the required steps to bring the situation under control. Union Home Secretary V K Duggal reportedly spoke with state Chief Secretary Sudhir Mankad and offered the centre's help to control the situation.

The National Commission for Minorities (NCM) has recommended a judicial inquiry into the police firing at Vadodara. The commission believes that the demolition of a centuries-old shrine should have been handled tactfully. The commission has also said that a structure that pre-dates a master plan cannot be categorized as encroachment nor can it be the policy of the government to pull down historical monuments.

The muslim community insists that the mausoleum has always been part of the city and should not have been removed.

The VMC has put its plan to demolish two more such mazaars on standby until such time the violence abates.