Bulandshahr (UP), Dec 3: Violence broke here on Monday over alleged illegal slaughter of cattle, leaving a police inspector and a youth dead as a mob went on a rampage here torching a police post and clashed with police, which opened fire to control the situation, officials said.

Additional Director General of Meerut zone Prashant Kumar said the protesters from Mahaw village and nearby areas pelted stones on the police and indulged in arson setting several vehicles and the Chingarwathi Police Chowki on fire.

Inspector Subodh Kumar, who was posted at the Syana Police Station, died in the violence, he said, but did not elaborate.

Police said a 20-year-old youth, identified as Sumit died of gunshot wounds.

The trouble started after villagers found some body parts of cow and its progeny in a jungle in Mahaw village, the ADG said.

Angry villagers and members of various Hindu groups brought the animal remains in tractor-trolley to the Chingarwathi Police Chowki and demanded action against the culprits.

They raised slogans against the police administration and blocked the Bulandshahr-Garh highway.

District Magistrate Anuj Kumar Jha said police and senior officials tried to reason with the protestors but they refused to budge.

As Sub-divisional Magistrate Avinash Kumar Maurya arrived on the scene, protesters turned violent, pelting stones on policemen and indulging in arson.

District Magistrate Anuj Kumar Jha said police had to open fire in self-defence.

Meerut Divisional Commissioner Aneeta C Meshram said she was rushing to the spot to take stock of the situation.

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Pune (PTI): Hundreds of people blocked the Mumbai-Bengaluru highway in Pune to protest the rape and murder of a four-year-old girl, leading to traffic disruption on the busy route for about four hours.

The girl's family members and other demonstrators placed the body on the road in the Navale Bridge area on Saturday evening and demanded stringent punishment for the 65-year-old man arrested in the case.

Several videos surfaced showing a huge traffic jam on the highway.

Later, the victim's last rites were performed at the Vaikunt crematorium here shortly after midnight amid tight police security.

The accused man, who works as a labourer and has a criminal record, allegedly lured the girl with the promise of food on Friday in the Bhor tehsil of Pune district. He then took her to a cattle enclosure where he allegedly sexually assaulted her and later killed her by hitting her with a stone, according to the police.

He was arrested based on CCTV footage from a private residence, which captured him with the child.

A case was registered against him under the relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and he has been remanded in police custody till May 7.

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar on Saturday met the family of the victim, assuring them of strict action against the accused and a fast-track trial.

Describing the incident as "shocking" and a "blot on humanity", Pawar said the government stands firmly with the victim's family and will ensure justice.

She also spoke to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and sought a fast-track court trial so that the accused receives the harshest punishment.

Deputy CM Eknath Shinde directed Pune rural police to gather concrete evidence to build a watertight case and conduct the trial in a fast-track court.

Efforts should be made to ensure the accused gets the death penalty, a statement quoted Shinde as saying.