Buxar: A dispute over the locking of the historic Ramleela stage at Chausa Bazaar ended on Wednesday after Buxar SDM Avinash Kumar and SDPO Gaurav Pandey intervened and pacified protesting villagers. The administration handed over the keys to the Ramlila committee, assured an inquiry into the incident and said performances would continue at the same venue.The dispute began after Chausa Nagar Panchayat executive officer (EO) Rani Kumari allegedly locked the premises during the ongoing Ramlila. Villagers have demanded a public apology from her over the action.On Wednesday morning, agitated villagers locked the main gate of the Chausa Nagar Panchayat office and demanded that the district magistrate, SDM and SDPO visit the spot by noon. They threatened to block the Chausa-Kochas State Highway if their demands were not addressed.Abhimanyu Kushwaha, a former Ramleela performer, said the event symbolised Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb and reflected communal harmony between Hindus and Muslims. Villagers said the tradition dates back to 1925 and has continued with the cooperation of both communities.“By locking the Ramleela stage, an attempt has been made to disrupt Chausa’s historic tradition and hurt people’s sentiments,” Kushwaha said. He demanded that the EO explain the circumstances under which the premises were locked, saying officials should follow due procedure before taking such action.Vikas Raj alleged that the EO visited the venue despite being aware of the ongoing festival and locked the premises without consulting Ramleela committee members or public representatives present there. He accused the Nagar Panchayat administration of acting arbitrarily and sought an explanation.The scheduled Ramleela performance could not be held on Tuesday because of the dispute. Villagers maintained that merely sending the keys to reopen the premises would not resolve the issue and insisted on a personal apology from the EO.However, EO Rani Kumari, said her action was not intended to hurt religious sentiments or interfere with the Ramleela. She said the building was a literacy centre meant for public use.Kumari said she was inspecting drain construction work in the market and wanted to enter the building. When the key could not be found, she put a separate lock on the premises. After learning about the dispute, she sent a staff member to open it, she said.Following the intervention of the SDM and SDPO, the keys were handed over to the Ramleela committee and the protest was called off. The administration assured villagers that the circumstances surrounding the incident would be investigated.
