Fear and tension prevailed in Meerut and Muzaffarnagar for the third consecutive day, with huge contingents of the paramilitary forces and police camping in areas where violence had erupted on Friday.

“We cannot go out to buy food because the forces are deployed at the intersections and are questioning everyone in sight. They scold us and ask us to stay indoors,” a resident of the Khalapar neighbourhood of Muzaffarnagar told local reporters over the phone on Sunday.

Local sources said a similar situation prevailed in the Kachchi Sarak and Sarvat areas of Muzaffarnagar and the Lisari Gate locality of Meerut. Five people were killed in street violence in Meerut on Friday.

State police chief Om Prakash Singh said 879 rioters had been arrested across Uttar Pradesh.