According to District Collector A K Rakesh, two tempo drivers -- one from Mora village and the other from Suliyad village -- had a fight over overtaking in Mora village, near Santram town, Dahod.

Though the driver from Suliyad complained to the proprietor of the Mora tempo and was promised action, an hour later, he returned with a mob of his supporters. Meanwhile, the Mora driver, too, had assembled his men, even as rumours ran wild that members of a particular community had been assaulted in Mora. Tempers thus ran high, and a number of people converged on Mora.

A police sub-inspector and a mamlatdar arrived on the scene soon afterwards and dispersed the mob, said Rakesh, but the men re-assembled in even larger numbers.

When the mob appeared to be going out beyond control and started pelting stones, the PSI fired two rounds from his service revolver, while State Reserve Police personnel, who had also arrived on the scene, fired five rounds in the air to scare away the mob, Rakesh said.

Though the mob dispersed immediately, it set on fire a farmhouse, an abandoned poultry farm and a hut while fleeing, Rakesh said, adding that the damage was estimated at Rs 5,000.

The collector said in the evening that the situation was fully under control. More reinforcements have been despatched to the village as a precautionary measure and all routes to the village had been sealed. Senior police officials, who arrived at the village after the incident, were camping there till the time of going to Press.