Aurangabad (Maha), May 16 (PTI) Police arrested Laxminarayan Bakharia alias Lachchu Pahelwan, alleged mastermind of the violence that took place in the city last week, late tonight.

A squad of the special investigation team, led by inspector Shrikant Nawale, arrested Bakharia on the charges of arson and rioting, a police official said.

It was suspected that Bakharia had taken money from some people to orchestrate rioting and arson so as to vacate some building where shops and kiosks are located, the official said.

Police have so far arrested over 50 persons, including two corporators of the Aurangabad Municipal Corporation, in connection with the violence that claimed two lives and left over 60 people injured.

The two corporators - Rajendra Janjal of Shiv Sena and Feroz Khan of All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) - were arrested by the SIT yesterday.

On May 11, Aurangabad, located about 350 km from here, witnessed clashes between groups allegedly over illegal water connections.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)