Mahayuti MLAs protest outside assembly demanding removal of Aurangzeb's grave in Sambhajinagar

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], March 18 (ANI): Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiv Sena MLAs held a protest outside the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly calling for the removal of Aurangzeb's grave in Sambhajinagar.
Earlier today, Shiv Sena MLA Arjun Khotkar supported the demand for the removal of Aurangzeb's grave, which is located in Kuldabad near Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in the state.
"I want to say it very clearly that Aurangzeb's grave should not be there. It should be removed," Khotkar told ANI
While the Mahayuti MLAs are demanding the removal of Aurangzeb's grave, the issue caused violence in the Hansapuri area of Nagpur as unidentified individuals vandalized shops, torched vehicles, and pelted stones following an earlier clash between two groups in the Mahal area that had already heightened tensions in the city, as per reports.
An eyewitness from Hansapuri described the chaos caused by a masked group. "A team came here, their faces were hidden with scarves. They had sharp weapons, stickers, and bottles in their hands. They started the ruckus, vandalized shops, and pelted stones. They also torched vehicles," the eyewitness said.
Another local resident confirmed the destruction. "They vandalized shops... they set fire to 8-10 vehicles," he said.
Meanwhile, Congress MP Shyamkumar Barve, speaking in Delhi, condemned the violence and urged people to maintain peace. "The kind of attempt is being made, a Hindu-Muslim clash has never happened in Nagpur. I want to appeal to both communities to maintain peace... an attempt is being made to divert attention from key issues through such incidents," Barve said.
Curfew was imposed in multiple areas of Nagpur city under Section 163 of the Bhartiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) following tensions over the demand to remove Aurangzeb's grave, read an official Maharashtra police notification.
According to the official order issued by Nagpur Police Commissioner Ravinder Kumar Singal, the restrictions will remain in place until further notice.
The curfew applies to police station limits in Kotwali, Ganeshpeth, Tehsil, Lakadganj, Pachpaoli, Shantinagar, Sakkardara, Nandanvan, Imamwada, Yashodharanagar, and Kapilnagar. (ANI)