Summary:
The local Dalit leaders continued the ceremony until late afternoon even as heavy police presence remained on the ground. This led to a clash between the police and Dalit leaders, who accused the BJP of hijacking the occasion for political mileage. However, as per protocol, the police teams deployed at the venue prohibited some local Dalit leaders from garlanding the statue before Mayor Bharat Dangar. While Dalit leaders chanted slogans against the BJP leaders, the ruling party leaders completed their rituals of offering floral tributes to the statue under police protection and departed from the venue. The Dalit leaders claimed that the BJP had “soiled” the statue by offering tributes to it..