BAREILLY, Dec. 24 -- In a major development related to the September 26 violence in Bareilly, the Bareilly Development Authority (BDA) on Tuesday demolished a banquet hall owned by Wahid Beg, a property dealer and close associate of Maulana Tauqeer Raza, the prime accused in the city unrest. The action was carried out amid heavy police deployment in Faridapur Chaudhary village under the Izzatnagar police station limits.

The demolition drive began around 11:30 am, with a Poklane machine and two bulldozers used to raze the structure. In the initial phase, a few women tried to protest, but police quickly intervened, allowing the BDA to continue with the operation.

According to officials, the banquet hall was demolished for violating buildi...